Final Fantasy 7 : Our Story
by GabbyLikeWoahOh
Summary: FF7, with two major differences: Ivan and Regret. This is our story, and everything will change.
1. Chapter 1

"One."  
Regret flipped her long hair over her shoulder carelessly, her eyes focused on the large metal doors in front of her.  
"Two." Cloud mumbled from next to her, his body lurching forward noticeably.  
"THREE." Barrett boomed, pushing himself from off of the ground and sprinting forward, his gun waving violently in the air.  
One long, slender arm reached forward a wrapped it's dainty fingers around the collar of Barrett's vest, holding him back.

"This isn't right…" Tifa whispered sharply, her brown eyes narrowing at the group. She tightened her hold on Barrett, who was squirming under her iron grip.

"We shouldn't just run in, weapons ablaze." Barrett ripped himself from Tifa's hold and spun to face her, his face contorted with a mixture of emotions.  
"An' why the hell not?" He raised his voice, crossing his arms roughly across his broad chest.

"SHH." Regret held a finger to her lips, her eyes glaring menacingly. She coughed to gain attention, and removed her finger from her mouth slowly.

"As much as I hate to say it, Tifa's right. ShinRa is loaded with heavy security and guards around every corner. By the time we make it to the elevator, security will have already activated the alarms and Aerith will be relocated. The best option would be to sneak in undetected." Cloud hummed in consideration, and then nodded his head in accord.

"Right. New Plan. We sneak in. There's bound to be another way in." Cloud pushed himself upright, and peered around, sword clenched tight in his hand.

"There's a basement pass. It's a bit of a climb to where we need to be but it's the only way in." Regret said, her voice low and hoarse.

"If it's the only way, we'll have to take it." Tifa said, standing.  
"Like. I. Said. It's the only way in. Listen next time." Regret shot back, rolling her eyes in annoyance.  
"Right. Move out." Cloud said, swinging his sword over his shoulder for support. He ventured towards a small door off centre, and pushed it open, wasting no time at all. Regret trailed closely behind, her mind focused on the task at hand, which was retrieving Aerith, at any cost.

-

"I never…wanna…see…a…set of…stairs…again." Barrett panted through his words, puffing and wheezing, attempting to catch his breath.

"Sixty. Sixty…fucking…flights…of…stairs." He placed his hand on the wall behind him and let all of his weight lean against it, taking the pressure off of his feet.

"And I- where are we?" Barrett was momentarily distracted from his complaining by the large and cluttered room they had arrived in. He waltzed over to where Regret and Cloud were standing, with stiff forms and sullen faces.

"What's up?" Tifa inquired, raising her eyebrows curiously. Regret parted her lips slightly, her chest heaving with heavy rises with each breath she took. Cloud ran a hand through his hair and let out a shaky breath, his eyes downcast.

"Why? Why would they bring that thing here?" He questioned, to nobody in particular.

"What's there motive?" Regret continued on, turning her head away from a large metal seal.  
"What are you two going on about?" Tifa said, tapping her foot.

"Take a look." Cloud said, thrusting a thumb in the direction of the seal. Tifa leaned up on her toes and places her hands on the cold metal, squinting to get a better view.  
"W…what is that?" Tifa took in a sharp breath, her eyes widening at the sight.  
"Jenova" Regret answered, her voice cracking at the end of her sentence.  
"Jenova. Sephiroth m-" Tifa sentence was cut short by Cloud silencing her, with a quick, swift movement of his finger to her lips. Tifa's eyes averted to where Regret was staring with intensity, and raised an eyebrow. Meanwhile, Barrett was peering into the metal seal, his mouth slightly agape.

"YO, WHAT-" Regret smacked her hand over Barrett's mouth and pulled him behind three stacked boxes, where Cloud and Tifa were squatting inconspicuously.

"Who…is that?" Tifa whispered, her question directed at Cloud and Regret, whom knew the most about ShinRa and it's employees.

Cloud furrowed his eyebrows, his body shaking. "That's Professor Hojo." An unwelcome feeling of nausea overtook Regret's body, causing her to shake in unison with Cloud. "Professor Hojo…" She whispered, closing her eyes lightly.

"Experiments are his forte'." Tifa nodded in understanding, and watched intently.

Professor Hojo had his hands plastered on the glass confinement in front of him, his eyes delighted as he watched a red dog like creature and Aerith within.  
"Two endangered species, to become one. I am a genius. That I am." Professor Hojo rambled aimlessly to himself, his eyes never leaving the two 'experiments'.

"We have to do something," Barrett said, waving his fist in impatience. "We gotta' save her." Regret wrapped her hand around the hilt of her sword, her fingers wrapping around the handle tightly.

"Go. NOW." Cloud said, raising his sword and cautiously making his way towards the control panel to open the glass confinement.  
Regret nodded and rushed forward, sword raised in rage, with Barrett and Tifa following closely behind.  
"HOJO!" She shouted, her voice reverberating off of the walls of ShinRa Headquarters. Professor Hojo tilted his head in the direction of the three.

"Now, don't you look familiar" He said, a chuckle evident in his deep voice. "My dear…" Hojo trailed off, turning his head back to Aerith. "Your not the only one who I have experimented on." His eyes danced with amusement, his mouth in the form of a smirk. Suddenly, the door to the glass confinement opened, and Cloud appeared from behind the control panel, his sword drawn.

"Your not the only one to have his plans foiled." He said, advancing on Hojo. A low growling could be heard, but the source was unknown, and so, Cloud chose to ignore it. "Cloud, MOVE!" Tifa yelled suddenly, her hands urgently ushering him away. In a flurry of red fur, the dog like creature pounced forward, sending Hojo flying backwards, his head coming into contact with the control panel behind him. Hojo flailed and wiggled wildly, and crawled out from beneath the creature, letting out large and wispy breaths.

"You won't escape from this so…easily." He managed to get out. Hojo launched himself up and made an attempt to flee, but Regret placed a foot on his lab coat, preventing him from moving.  
"Hojo…" She whispered his name, her voice dripping with venom. "You…"  
"REGRET!" Tifa called desperately. "We need help. NOW!" Regret rolled her eyes towards Tifa's directions, and immediately placed Hojo on her list of least concern. A large fiend was lashing out wildly, sending shoots of poisonous liquid towards everything that seemed to block it's path. Regret ran forward, her swords raised offensively. "Where did this come from?" She asked, giving the fiend a once over.

"The Specimen Elevator." The red dog like creature stepped forward, it's head nodding in the direction of where it was previously being imprisoned. Seemingly unfazed by the dog talking, Regret nodded nonchalantly and redirected her attention to the fiend, her atypical yellow eyes scanning for a weak spot. Tifa and Barrett appeared to be occupied with the fiends lower regions, which didn't seem to be affecting it a great deal while Cloud took a defensive stance in front of a frightened and fragile Aerith.  
"You on our side dog?" Regret asked firmly, her attention not once leaving the antics of the fiend.

"It seems so." Regret held up her sword with little difficulty and let the blade point towards a small crevice in the fiend's neck.

"Attack there. It should go down. Fast." The dog nodded and launched its body forward, his headdress blades cutting across the tender flesh of the specimen's neck. Regret followed suit, her blades forming a solid X shape. She pulled her arms outwards and let the blades follow through, with accurate precision. The specimen's movements faltered, and it came crashing down, it's heavy carcass hitting the cold metal floor with an echoed thud. Tifa stretch her limbs out and Barrett punched the air victoriously, while Cloud sheathed his sword and Aerith breathed a sigh of relief. However, the battle was not over for Regret. She spun on her heel, her fingers tapping on the soft material covering her blade handles in anxiety.

"No…" She mumbled, her eyebrows furrowing with displeasure. Hojo had took the moment Regret had dedicated to kill the specimen to escape unharmed.

"Save revenge for another day." A voice spoke gently from behind her. "There are more important tasks at hand." Regret turned to face the dog and nodded, returning to her usual stoic demeanour.

"Your right. The name's Regret, by the way."

"My specimen name is Red XIII, but call me what you wish." Aerith slowly stepped forward and dropped to her knees, bowing her head in front of RED XIII politely.

"Thank you." She whispered sweetly, her soft voice barely above a whisper. She then threw her arms around RED XIII's neck and nuzzled her head into his mane cutely. Regret couldn't help but smile at her antics. Aerith could bring a smile to anyone's face. Barrett walked forward, his eyebrows raised in confusion.

"What are you?"

RED XIII tilted his head in an attempt to get a better view of Barrett.

"An informed question, but difficult to answer. I am what you see –"

"Let's go. We found her, great. Now let's get out of here. This place gives me the creeps." Tifa cut in, raising her voice impatiently.

"Wait…" RED XIII placed his paw firmly on the ground and looked up at Regret with determined eyes.

"I was brought here with someone else. I'm…I'm not leaving here without her. Would it be too much of a burden for you to help me?" Almost immediately, before anyone could consider RED XIII'S request, Aerith had spoken.

"Yes. We'll help you. It's the least we could do in return for your previous assistance." Regret silently agreed with Aerith, and turned to Cloud and Barrett for approval.

"What harm could it do?" Barrett said, punching his right fist into his left. Cloud just nodded, and turned his attention to RED XIII.

"What's our itinerary?" Cloud inquired, raising a blonde eyebrow.

"Specimen Room number 3." RED XIII said, beginning to lead the way.

-  
Regret carefully and cautiously pushed open the metal door to The Specimen Room Three. Leaving the door ajar to prevent making further noise, she squeezed in followed by RED XIII, Cloud, Barrett and Tifa. RED XIII bounded ahead, the charms of his headdress making soft bell like noises with each movement.

"Ivan?" RED XIII called out, his noise twitching in response to the scent of the air. A groan emitted from the corner of the room, which triggered the group's alertness. RED XIII ran over to where the noise originated from, and growled lowly.

"Red?" A hoarse voice asked, trembling slightly. Regret's ears picked up the traces of fear within the voice, and Regret instantly knew her condition was not a good one.

"Is there a light in here? I can't see anything." Tifa said, emphasising the anything. Regret, knowing her way around the place, flipped a switch and the room was immediately illuminated. Their eyes all hardened at the sight that lay before them. A pale girl hung from the wall, her wrists chained behind her. Her red hair was knotted and fell in messy tresses over her shoulders. Bruises had formed in various places on her fair skin, with specks of dried blood across her clothing. Her eyes were an odd shade of pale blue, and when she looked up, one could clearly see the weakness and tiredness in her eyes. Her mouth was open slightly as she stared at the strange people in front of her. "Who…are you people?" Her voice was sharp and threatening, yet terrified at the same time.

"We mean no harm. We're here to save you." Cloud piped up, his voice calm and comforting. An unlikely trait to be seen in Cloud. The girl let out a shaky breath and her eyes began to water, small sobs escaped her bruised lips.

"It hurts. It hurts Red…so much." She whispered, letting her eyes droop closed. Regret stepped forward and unsheathed her swords, holding them up angrily. She brought the swords down on the chains holding the frail girl up, and upon her release, her legs buckled and she fell forward. Regret's quick reflexes caught the small girl, dropping her swords in the process.

"She's weak." Regret informed the others. She placed her hands on the girls back comfortingly, and held her close like a child. RED XIII came closer and licked her cheek, cleaning it off.

"What's her name?" Regret asked RED XIII, who seemed occupied in caring for the lithe girl. "Ivan." He said simply, rubbing his furry head against her bruised skin delicately.

"What…what did they do to you?" Tifa asked, kneeling down next to them. Ivan opened her eyes slowly and took in a slow breath, her arms limply resting by her sides.

"They…stuck needles in me. There were too many to count. They told me they wanted to fuse RED XIII'S DNA with my own, to prevent the extinction of his race. Hojo…wants to play God… and he doesn't care about who gets hurt in the process."

Regret's grip unknowingly tightened at the mention of Hojo.

"Ah. You're hurting me…" Ivan cried out, weakly reaching out to RED XIII for help.

"Regret!" Cloud said sternly, breaking her out of her trance. Ivan quickly pulled her limp body out of Regret's arms and back away, coughing into her hand. Pulling her hand away from her mouth, she saw it stained red with an icky substance. Ivan widened her eyes and looked towards RED XIII who was staring back at Ivan with concern. Regret immediately felt guilt wash over her and cast her eyes downward, her mouth tightened into a straight line. Ivan noticed and waved her hand dismissively, forcing a smile. "Don't worry…" She coughed again. "It wasn't you. It's the effects of that chemical Hojo injected…Markie, was it? Makoo?"

"Mako" Cloud corrected, his fists clenched. "He injected that into you? That's…dangerous." Ivan just nodded and wiped her hand onto the rags that covered her body. "He said it would strengthen my body, so I wouldn't die on him. But…I feel weaker than ever." She leaned back slightly, letting her head lull backwards, her red mane of hair following suit.

"I'm so tired…" She drifted off, her eyes closing with impending unconsciousness. Suddenly Ivan fell back soundlessly, softly hitting RED XIII'S furry back.

"Ivan?" RED XIII whispered, fearful undertones breaking through his calm demeanour.

"She'll be okay. Cloud, can you carry her?" Regret asked, fixing her eyes on Cloud's strong physique. He nodded and effortlessly lifted her, her body dangling lifelessly in his muscular arms.

"YO, ShinRa fucks everyone over, ya know…" Barrett stated in annoyance, eyeing the poor girl.

"I hope she'll be okay…" Aerith said hesitantly.

"Me too." Tifa added. She then jutted her thumb out to the door behind her. "Let's get out of her." Cloud cleared his throat, gaining his comrades attention.

"If all seven of us go together, we'll be noticed. Let's break up into three groups."

Tifa and Barrett ventured towards the distant elevator opposite to the on Cloud, Ivan and RED XIII faced while Regret and Aerith took the elevator adjacent to Cloud.

"Be on guard." Regret warned, walking into the elevator with Aerith trailing closely behind.

Cloud took extra care while holding Ivan. She felt as if she could shatter at a single touch.

"How's she faring?" RED XIII asked, nudging her foot with his head.

"As well as one can get without treatment…" Cloud mumbled, shifting his weight uncomfortably.

"You alright?" Ivan asked, concern etched evidently in her voice.

Cloud merely nodded, sending a small, reassuring smile in her direction. She smiled back and closed her eyes, trying to regain her strength.

"Hold up…this ain't our floor."

With the doors beginning to separate, Cloud could make out a figure standing on the other side. He narrowed her eyes in suspicion and pulled Ivan closer in a protective manner.

"We have company." He informed RED XIII. He immediately tensed as the doors opened, to reveal two ShinRa employees, more specifically, Turk's. They waltzed into the elevator coolly, and one Turk pointed his arm upwards, indicating he wanted to go up. RED XIII'S tail hit the button and the elevator started with a jolt, and then began its ascent.

"Rude and Tseng…" RED XIII mumbled, eyeing the two cautiously.

"Must be a trap." Cloud whispered to Ivan, gently setting her on her feet but keeping a supporting arm around her shoulders. Tseng, the Turk with long black hair neatly tied back stepped forward, a smirk playing on his lips.

"It must have been a real thrill for you. Did you enjoy it?"

Cloud grunted in response and shook his head as Rude slapped handcuffs tightly around his wrists and grabbed RED XIII's mane.

Tseng scooped Ivan up into his arms and held her tightly, and with what little energy she had, she sunk into his embrace. RED XIII growled lowly as a small smirk grew on Tseng's face. His arms flew to her legs and Tseng lifted her so she was lying snug in his arms. "Don't worry…" Tseng said, the smirk evident in his voice. "I'll take care of you." The elevator doors opened and The Turks pulled Cloud, RED XIII and Ivan straight into President ShinRa's office.


	2. Chapter 2

The Turk's placed their captives before President's ShinRa's desk and retreated to the corners of the room, watching the 'prisoners' with a keen eye. Cloud glanced around; his eyes coming to rest on his allies who were handcuffed alongside him.

"You all got caught too? Where is Aerith?" Cloud inquired, his question pointed toward Regret.

"Aerith is in a safe place." A voice sounded. Cloud's head flew in the direction of the voice, narrowing his eyes at the form the voice hailed from. President ShinRa sat before them; his elbows propped on his desk with an amused look. "She's the last surviving Ancient…" He continued, his voice rough and hoarse. "Don't you know? They called themselves the Cetra, and they lived thousands of years ago. Now they are just a forgotten page in history."

"Cetra…that girl, is she a survivor of the Cetra?" RED XIII inquired, his soft voice filled with intense inquisitiveness.

"Cetra, or the Ancients, will show us the way to the promised land. I'm expecting a lot out of her."

"The promised land? Isn't that just a legend?" RED XIII inquired again.

"Even so, it's just too appealing not to pursue. It's been said the Promised Land is very fertile. If the land is fertile…"

"Then there's gotta be Mako!" Barrett finished off.

"Exactly. That is why our money sucking Mako reactor is necessary. The abundant Mako will just come out on it's own. That is where Neo-Midgar will be built. ShinRa's new glory."

"SHIT! Quit dreamin'!" Barrett yelled, punching his fist into his hand angrily.

"Oh really, don't you know? These days all it takes for your dreams to come true is money and power. Well, that is all for our meeting." President ShinRa waved his had dismissively, yawning hugely into his other large palm. Rude waltzed forward and pushed back a fuming Barrett with force. "Come on! Outta his way." Barrett attempted to push past Rude and pointed at ShinRa accusingly.

"Hold it! I got a lot I wanna say to you!" Rude pushed Barrett backwards, with much more force the second time round. He cussed deeply and spun on his heel and began to follow his comrades who were being ushered into ShinRa's prison cells.

"I wonder how Barrett and RED XIII are doing…" Cloud mused, leaning against the wall of the prison cell, his left foot propped up against the wall behind him.

BARRETT AND RED XII'S CELL

"I only heard stories about the Promised land. I don't know if it really exists." Barrett said, his rambling directed towards the red dog lying lazily opposite him.

"Is that right? ShinRa believe that the Promised Land is full of Mako energy. Which means, if ShinRa gets there, they'll suck up all the Mako energy and the land will wither away. The planets going to get weaker." RED XIII flicked his tail, and shifted his body to get into a more comfortable position.

"I can't just leave it be. Im recruitin' new members! Me, Tifa, Cloud, Regret, Ivan, Aerith too! How 'bout you!"

RED XIII didn't respond. He merely flicked his tail again.

"Your so damn boring."

AERITH AND REGRET'S CELL

"Cloud? Are you there?" Aerith called out, her innocent voice bouncing off the walls of the cell. Cloud's ears twitched and he pressed his head against the wall of his cell.

"Aerith! Are you safe?"

"Yes. I'm all right. I have Regret with me." She said, sending a smile towards said girl.

"Oh Cloud, I knew you would come for me." She yelled out, clasping her hands against her chest happily.

"Hey, I'm your bodyguard, right?" Cloud replied, a smirk forming on his usually expressionless face.

"The deal was for one date."

"Oh…I get it…" Tifa piped up.

"Tifa! Tifa, your there too?" Aerith asked, happy to hear the voices of her friends.

"You know Aerith…I have a question." Tifa leaned against the wall where Cloud was so she could hear better.

"Does the Promised Land really exist?" Aerith cast her gaze downwards.

"I don't know. All I know is the Cetra were born from the planet, speak with the planet…they unlock the planet. The Cetra will eventually return to the Promised Land, a land that promises supreme happiness."

"What does that mean?" Regret asked, interested in Aerith's story.

"More than words…I don't know." Aerith replied earnestly. Cloud, intrigued by Aerith's words, pressed the subject further. "You speak with the planet?"

"Just what does the planet say? Tifa added.

"It's too full of people and noise." Aerith replied solemnly. "That's why I can't make out what it is saying."

"Do you hear it now?" Ivan asked, limping over to stand in-between Cloud and Tifa, who were intent on hearing Aerith's words.

"I only hear it at the Church in the Slums. My mother said that Midgar was no longer safe. That is…my real mother. Someday I'll get out of Midgar." Aerith sighed, looking up to the cell roof, her eyes glazed over and dreamy. "I'll speak with the planet and find the Promised Land. That's what my mother said…" She trailed off, growing silent. Regret watched Aerith from the corner of her eye, expressionless and stoic.

Cloud pushed a stray blonde hair out of his face, and twisted his body to find a more comfortable position on the hard metal floor beneath him. Light snoring could be heard from Tifa who was curled up against the wall in the corner of the confined room. He groaned in annoyance and sat up, a large breath of air escaping his lungs.

"You okay?" Ivan questioned, slowly pushing herself into a sitting position on the comforter she was occupying.

"I should be asking you that." Cloud whispered, sending a small smile in her direction.

"Come sit up here." Ivan said, patting the empty mattress area next to her. "I'm sure there's enough room for both of us." Cloud nodded and stood, walking over and plopping down next to Ivan with a content sigh.

"Much better than the floor." He let out a halfhearted chuckled and turned to face Ivan fully.

"So are you okay?" Cloud asked, genuine concern overtaking his voice. Ivan smiled and closed her eyes, flexing her aching fingers from her lap.

"Not so great. But I'm improving." She arched her back to stretch, then let out a silent yawn.

"You should rest. Who knows how long we'll be in here for…" Cloud said, glancing around the room.

"I don't wanna take away the bed from you. You just got comfortable." She said, a guilty look passing across her face.

"I'll endure it. Besides, you need it much more than me." Ivan shook her head, disagreeing, and her short red locks reminiscent of a lion's mane flew wildly around.

"No. You need your rest too. Look. Lay back." She said, pushing Cloud's shoulder back softly so his back hit the wall, his legs dangling off the side of the mattress. She then followed suit, resting her back against the wall. "See?" Cloud nodded nonchalantly, and then noticed Ivan's squirming to get comfortable. He patted his shoulder gently, and Ivan looked at him, a grin slowly forming on her face.

"Oh, looks like I have my own personal pillow now." She snorted back a laugh, then let her head fall onto Cloud's shoulder comfortably. On instinct, he draped an arm over her shoulders and held onto her warmly.

"You're like a big brother…so nice and protective…I always wondered what it would be like to have a brother." Ivan whispered, her eyebrows tilted upwards in a frown.

"I'll be your big brother…" Cloud whispered, his hand squeezing her shoulder as he said so. Ivan nodded and felt herself drifting off into unconsciousness, Cloud's words lingering in her mind. _I'll be your big brother…_

Mako coloured eyes drifted off to the side landing on a sleeping Ivan who was nestled into his side, clutching his shirt ever so gently. Cloud blinked tiredly and pried her fingers from his shirt, lifting her body up and placing her gently on the bed.

"Sleep." He whispered, ruffling her hair lightly. Cloud took a step back and spun, walking towards the door but stopped short out the sight before him. A sight he had not expected to see.

"The door's open. When did it open?" Cloud walked out of the cell, a look of shock passing his face as he did so. A ShinRa guard lay bleeding and lifeless on the cold floor, his body decapitated and ripped in every which way.

"What happened?" Cloud mumbled to no one in particular, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion. Footsteps were the only sound that filled the empty ShinRa building as Cloud ran back into the cell to wake up Ivan and Tifa.

"Ivan, wake up. Tifa!" He called, banging on the door loudly. Tifa sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"Look outside." Cloud said, jutting his thumb in the direction of the corridor. Tifa jumped to her feet instantly and ran out the door. Cloud made his way to Ivan and helped her onto her feet.

"Something's wrong. Can you walk?" Ivan let go of Cloud for a moment, gaining balance and limped forward.

"I'll manage." She said, limping out the door to where Tifa was standing.

"Oh golly…" Ivan mumbled, slapping a hand to her mouth to avoid breathing in the foul stench of blood and various bodily fluids.

"He should have the key on him." Cloud said, bending down slightly so he could rummage through the guards pockets. "Here." He said, pulling out a small silver key and tossing it to Tifa. Open the cell doors. Quick." Tifa nodded and proceeded to do as she was told. Cloud then turned to Ivan, concern sweeping over his body.

"Get on my back. I'll carry you." Ivan nodded without hesitation, knowing her injuries would only slow down the group. "Hold on." He said firmly, while vaulting her upwards so she wouldn't slip.

"No ordinary human could have done this." RED XIII said, examining the body that was emanating a stench that made whoever walked past it cringe with disgust.

"I'll go ahead." He said, bounding ahead, his fiery tail disappearing around the corner.

"Let's go Cloud. I'm scared."

They met up with RED XIII who was staring at a trail of blood that seemed to originate from a familiar metal seal.

"Jenova…" Cloud whispered.

"That thing? That headless thing from before? That's what did this? Yo, that's messed up!" Barrett yelled, wiping developing sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Jenova Specimen. Looks like it went to the upper floor using that elevator for specimens." RED XIII stated pointedly.

"Follow it." Cloud ordered, ushering his comrades into the elevator with quick succession.

An eerie silence filled the air as AVALANCHE stood before President ShinRa's desk, with the President himself laying flat forward, a tall sword impaled through his body.

"I was not expecting this." Regret said, eyeing the sword suspiciously. Barrett leaned forward and squinted his eyes, not believing what he was seeing. Such a sight was too much for him to behold.

"He's dead…the leader of ShinRa Inc. is dead." Regret sent a glance in Cloud's direction, her eyes flashing dangerously as Cloud eyed the sword.

"This sword…it's Sephiroth's." Cloud stated, placing Ivan on the ground, minding her wounds as he did so. Tifa took in a sharp breath, and glanced at the sword, her eyes widening in realization.

"Only Sephiroth can use that sword." Regret mumbled, crossing her arms and averting her gaze away from Sephiroth's sword. RED XIII examined her movements curiously. He knew for a fact that she had something to hide, however it was not his place to pry.

"P…p…please don't kill me." A voice sounded, catching everyone's attention for mere seconds.

"Show yourself." Regret raised her voice, yet somehow managed to keep her cool and collected façade. Palmer, a ShinRa employee who worked closely with the president himself, crawled out from behind the President's desk, his body shaking with absolute fear.

"Did you see him? Did you see Sephiroth?" Cloud demanded an answer, his voice loud and harsh.

"I saw him with my own eyes." Palmer announced, letting out a shaky breath.

"Really? You saw him?" RED XIII asked, sceptical.

"Uh, would I lie to you at a time like this? And I heard his voice too! He was saying something about not letting us have The Promised Land." Palmer exclaimed, waving his arms around for a dramatized effect.

"Then what? Does this means the Promised Land really exists and that Sephiroth's here to save it from ShinRa?"

"Wait…" Ivan placed a finger on her chin in thought. "Does that mean this Sephiroth fella is a good guy?"

"Save the Promised Land? A good guy? No way!" Cloud shook his head vigorously. "It's not that simple. I know him! Sephiroth's mission is different…" The ending of Cloud's sentence was overtaken by the loud chopping noises of a helicopter's blades. Palmer ran to the open balcony and signalled the helicopter desperately.

"Who could that be?" Aerith asked, her curiosity taking over. Regret peered through the window, her eyes narrowing in focus.

"Damn, I forgot about him."

"Who is it?" Aerith asked again, her large green eyes blinking innocently with a lack of understanding.

"Vice President Rufus ShinRa. The president's son." Barrett answered. "Let's go!" He said, pointing to the balcony where Rufus was arriving.

The group ventured outside of the room, with Regret taking one last glance at the sword. A sword she had familiarised herself with. Sephiroth's sword.

"RUFUS SHINRA!" Cloud called out, turning to face the Vice President, his buster sword clenched tightly in his gloved hands. Rufus cast his eyes downward, a thoughtful look plastered on his fair-skinned face.

"So Sephiroth was actually here…by the way. Who are you all?"

"I'm Cloud, former SOLDIER, first class!"

"I'm from AVALANCHE." Barrett yelled, pride echoed through his voice.

"Me too." Tifa piped up, raising her fist defensively.

"A flower girl from the slums." Aerith said, averting her eyes.

"A research specimen." RED XIII said, keeping up his calm demeanour.

"Same. I was experimented on…" Ivan said, her constantly glazed eyes sending chills through Rufus' being.

"My information is irrelevant." Regret said, her voice expressing no emotion.

"What a crew." Rufus flipped his hair confidently. "I'm Rufus. The **President **of ShinRa Incorporated." He stated proudly, placing emphasis on the word President.

"You only President, cause yer' old man died." Barrett yelled in response.  
"That's right. And because I'm President I'll let you hear my new appointment speech." Rufus placed his hands neatly behind his back and began to pace bath and forth in a repetitive manner.

"My old man tried to control the world with money. It seems to have been working. The population thought that ShinRa would protect them. If you worked at ShinRa you got your pay. If a terrorist attacked the ShinRa army would help you. It looked perfect from the outside. But, I do things differently." Rufus stopped pacing and clenched his fist. "I'll control the world with fear. It takes too much to do it like my old man. A little fear will control the minds of the common people. There's no reason to wast money on them." Rufus turned his back on them and remained silent.

"Get outta this building with Aerith!" Cloud said, directing his words towards Barrett.

"What?" He replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll explain later! Barrett! This is a real crisis for the planet!"

"The hell's that s'posed to mean?"

"Just take my word for it Barrett! I'll meet up with you all once I take care of him." Cloud drew his sword and used the blade to point in the direction of Rufus.

"Alright then…" Barrett asked nor more questions and began to follow orders.

"Be careful Cloud." Regret said to Cloud, her voice void of any emotion.

"Take care of Ivan and Aerith." Regret nodded and picked up Ivan, careful not to irritate her injuries, than preceded to lead Barrett and the others away from Rufus.

"Why do you want to fight me?" Rufus inquired, amusement dancing in his eyes.

"You seek the Promised Land and Sephiroth." Cloud's grip tightened on his sword.

"Hm. Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?"

"A lot has happened since then…it doesn't matter! I can't let either you or Sephiroth have the Promised Land!" Cloud yelled, with determination coursing through his body.

"I see. I guess this means we won't be friends." With that said, Rufus ran to Cloud, weapons ablaze.


	3. Chapter 3

Tifa skidded to a halt in the middle of the room and looked behind her, as if she were in thought.

"This is no time for dawdling Tifa." Regret said sternly, her voice booming through the quite atmosphere of the empty ShinRa building. Tifa fiddled her thumbs and glanced behind her shoulder again.

"I'll wait for Cloud! Everyone, get to the elevator!" Regret rolled her eyes and waved her hand nonchalantly, ignoring Tifa's announcement. She adjusted Ivan in her arms to a more comfortable position and proceeded into the elevator, with Barrett, Aerith and RED XIII trailing her. The doors closed with a high-pitched ding and the elevator began to vibrate and shake with momentum.

"What's up with the elevator, huh?" Barrett asked, nervously jutting his eyes around the small, isolated area.

"Something's wrong…" RED XIII moved to the centre of the elevator, with the others copying his movements. An eerie silence filled the elevator, but the silence was quickly broken when the glass walls of the elevator shattered around them. Suddenly, the elevator's speed increased and it began to drop at an alarming rate.

"Look!" Aerith said, shoving her finger violently into the air, pointing at a mechanical flying device, which was quite large in size.

"Brace ya'self! It's got guns!" Barrett shouted out, raising his own gun in defence. Regret released her hold on Ivan and placed her gently on the ground so she could equip her own weapons. RED XIII stepped in front of Ivan and used his tail to push Aerith behind him protectively.

"Barrett, Regret. You two take care of the ShinRa weapon. I'll look after these two." He said, sending fire spells towards the enemy from a distance.

"We're gonna hit the ground!" Ivan yelped, peering over the side of the elevator, her eyes growing wide with fear.

Barrett shot his gun multiple times, getting a few shots in and missing some, but none dealing critical damage. Regret jumped forward and brought her left sword onto the tail of the ShinRa weapon, but her attacks were futile and were only as effective as Barrett's.

"We need to hit it hard. Really hard…" Regret mused. "Barrett, give me a boost!" She yelled, attempting to raise her voice louder than the sounds of elevator screeching against its metal supports.

"Jump!" Barrett held his gun arm towards Regret and used his free arm to bring her forward in a 'come hither' gesture. Regret sprinted forward and jumped, her foot planting firmly on Barrett's gun. He then proceeded to release a Burst Shot. The force of the shot propelled Regret forward, straight into the ShinRa weapon. She raised her swords and hit it three times in quick succession. The weapon began to convulse, and exploded, the metal parts flying in random directions.

"Stop the elevator!" RED XIII demanded, a growl emitting from his throat. Regret grunted, and shoved her swords into the walls with all the strength she could fathom.

Sparks were released from the impact, and the elevator screeched to a halt. Regret retrieved her swords and re-sheathed them, collapsing to her knees from exhaustion. Aerith stumbled forward, staff in hand. "Here." She spoke kindly. "Let me heal you." Regret just nodded, not bothering to look up. Warmth spread throughout Regret's body, her energy slowly being regained.

"Heal Ivan too." Regret said, her eyes averting to the red haired girl who was sitting limply on the ground, her back being supported by RED XIII.

"I have…" Aerith replied, her tone one of melancholy. "Her injuries are too deep for a simple spell to cure." Ivan looked up, a small and determined smile planted on her lips.

"No worries, yeah? I'll be a-okay!" She said, her mouth morphing into a grin. Regret shook her head and stood up, walking over to Ivan. She leant down and pulled Ivan up into her arms, resuming her hold she had on her before.

"Hang in there for Cloud…okay?" Aerith said, patting Ivan on the head with a smile on her face.

"Ya know, you and Cloud have become awfully close quickly. An' you guys just met." Barrett eyed Ivan curiously, his face questioning.

"Yeah. Cloud's my big brother." Noticing the surprised looks on everybody's face, she let out a small laugh. "Not my real brother. I always wondered what it would like to have a big brother, so now I've made Cloud my unofficial brother. I imagine if I had a brother, he would act exactly how Cloud does." She then glanced at RED XIII and reached out to run her fingers daintily over his fur. "And Red's like my brother too." He smiled and dipped his head in embarrassment, his headdress charms jingling as he did so.

"That's so sweet." Aerith cooed, clasping her hands in front of her happily.

"Never knew Cloud was a softie, huh?" Barrett boomed out in laughter, throwing his head back. Regret led the way out of the elevator, arriving on the 1st floor, in the lobby of ShinRa Incorporated.

"Speaking of Cloud, do you think he's okay?" Aerith asked, raising her eyebrows in concern.

Rufus' knees buckled from the weight of Cloud's sword being pressed against his shoulder. Rufus bent down and backed up, removing the sword from his body.

"Hm. That's all for today…" A ShinRa helicopter slowly came into view and moved in close, hovering dangerously near the balcony railing. Rufus reached upwards and grabbed the ShinRa helicopter's landing bar. With Rufus safe, the helicopter hovered away allowing him a quick and cowardly escape. Cloud scoffed in annoyance and re-sheathed his sword, turning to leave the scene.

Walking towards the elevator, Cloud noticed Tifa standing in the room, tense yet patient. Upon hearing the sound of the door creaking open and footsteps approaching, Tifa spun on her heel to come face to face with a sweating Cloud.

"Where's Rufus?" She questioned, raising a thin eyebrow.

"I couldn't finish him. Look's like this is gonna get complicated."

Barrett waltzed towards the entrance of ShinRa inc. ready to hightail it away from the bloodied up building, but stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing movements beyond the doors. Peering closer, he could just make out the outline of ShinRa soldiers, and from what he could see; there were enough to seize an entire army.

"Shit. Surrounded huh? If I was alone this wouldn't be no problem, but I gotta reputation to protect." He began to ramble on, his eyes landing on the soldiers outside.

"You all get out while you can. It's not you they're after…it's me." Aerith let out a sigh, and shook her hands dismissively. Barrett let out an odd chuckle and winked at Aerith, placing a large hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, well that ain't happenin'. You got caught up in this tryin' to save Marlene, my lil'girl. Now it's my turn to watch over you!" Barrett turned towards the Lobby Doors where the soldiers stood opposite. He cocked his gun and bared his teeth in a lopsided grin. "Ok, playtime's over for you jackasses." Aerith dipped her head, and smiled the largest smile she could muster.

"Thank you Mr Barrett." His eyes bulged at her words, and his lips were left slightly agape.

"WHO YOU CALLIN' MR BARRETT? That don't sound right…makes me feel old…" He trailed off, tilting his head in the opposite direction of Aerith. A small groan came from Ivan, who was gripping onto Regret's shirt tightly.

"Can we please get out of here…I feel icky." She mumbled, puffing out her cheeks. RED XIII swished his tail out to brush her hand with it.

"Right, we will. So if you stop talking, Barrett, may I suggest that we think of a way to get out of here?"

"Huh? Oh yeah…you a cold man, Red. Just like someone else I know." He said, shooting a glare towards Regret, who simply stared back with a blank expression.

"You say something?" She said, quirking an eyebrow with annoyance. Barrett threw his hands up inconspicuously. "I said nothing. Not a godamned thing. So, what're we gonna -"

"BARRETT!" Tifa cut off Barrett mid-sentence, sprinting into the room with swiftness. "Everyone over here!" She indicated.

"Where's Cloud?" Aerith asked.

"I'll tell you later. Follow me, and hurry!" Tifa ran up the stairs, and the others had no other choice but to follow her. She ran to a green truck and jumped in the driver's seat, pulling on her seatbelt.

"Get in!" She yelled. Aerith took the passengers seat and RED XIII, Regret, Barrett and Ivan were left to ride in the Ute backing.

A loud rumbling began to echo, the sound reverberating off of the walls escalating the volume. An engine revved and wheels skidded, the rumbling growing louder.

"It's Cloud!" Ivan pointed to Cloud sitting comfortably on a motorbike, revving his engine. "Wh..what is he doing?" Suddenly Cloud released the brake and the bike skidded, breaking into a high speed, straight through the window and onto the freeway below. Tifa was quick to follow, slamming her foot on the accelerator, wasting no time at all.

"What a rush. It feels good to breath real air again." Ivan exclaimed, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of wind rushing through her hair.

"Don't rejoice just yet." Regret said, her monotonous tone scaring Ivan out of her reverie. "ShinRa are quick. They have plenty of Soldiers at their disposal." Regret pointed to a group of ShinRa soldiers pursuing AVALANCHE on motorcycles similar to Cloud's. Cloud equipped his sword, steering the back with one hand, readying himself to defend himself and his friends from ShinRa's attacks. The bikers steered closer to Cloud, wildly attempting to injure him in some way or ender his bike useless but to no avail. Cloud deflected each attack and fought back with equal strength, landing each blow perfectly. The amount of attacking ShinRa Soldiers dramatically increased until it was just Cloud and the one soldier left. Cloud dealt the final blow, knocking the Soldier from his bike and onto the road, only to have his body crushed by an oncoming ShinRa weapon.

"STOP THE TRUCK." Regret yelled, pulling out her swords and holding them defensively in front of her. The truck and Cloud's bike skidded to a stop and Avalanche hopped onto the road, preparing for the oncoming battle.

"Another ShinRa weapon?" RED XIII asked, growling in annoyance.

"Let's just shaky shake over to it and tear it to pieces! EASY!" Ivan limped forward and held out her fists, narrowing her eyes.

"No." Cloud said, picking her up and putting her in the truck. "I'm not letting you fight in this state." Ivan frowned and punched her fists together, grinning wickedly.

"Just you wait. I'll show you what I can do."

Cloud returned to the rest of AVALANCHE and took his battle stance, awaiting the unavoidable battle. "You guys ready?" Tifa asked, her fists up. Regret slashed the air and smirked confidently. "Always." Just as the ShinRa weapon arrived, a loud clink was heard. Cloud looked up and widened his eyes, fear racking his body.

"IVAN!" He yelled, his chest heaving. "It's not safe." Ivan flapped her hand and rolled her eyes, sticking her tongue out immaturely.

"Oh quiet Chocobo head. I know what I'm doing."

"Ivan, please. You'll get hurt." Aerith pleaded, her eyes filled with worry. RED XIII walked forward and stood in front of the group with a surprisingly calm façade.

"Just watch." Cloud furrowed his eyebrows and kept his eyes locked on Ivan, ready to protect her. "A little bit o' this and a little bit o' that. Hm, oh SHINY!" She yelled, pocketing an item she pulled from the weapon. Ivan crawled over the head on the weapon and smashed open a small hatch on the side of its head.

"Aha!" She plunged her hands into the small opening and began to tinker with the wiring. "Yepperoo. That should just about do it." The weapon began to tremble and within an instant it shutdown. Ivan gave a triumphant grin and began to climb down the ShinRa weapon, but her injuries got the better of her and she let go, her hands losing their strength.

"Ivan!" Cloud yelled rushing forward, but RED XIII was quicker and caught Ivan on his back. "Don't overwork yourself." Red said, carrying her over to AVALANCHE.

"Yo, what did'ja do to that thing? It collapsed straight away." Ivan coughed and rolled off of Red's back and onto the ground, leaning back onto his furry stomach for support.

"I was the mechanic back at Cosmo Canyon. My forte is machines and weapons, anything that I can take apart, really. I…" Ivan took a breath to steady herself and clenched her eyes shut in pain. "Well maybe I shouldn't have climbed that thing, it worsened my injuries. But…I saved you guys from one dirty fight. That thing…is dangerous." Cloud bent down and picked Ivan up, something that had become natural to him. He cradled her in his arms and smiled.

"Good job."

"Well, what do we do now?" Barrett asked, turning towards Cloud.

"Sephiroth is alive. I…I have to settle the score." Cloud responded as his eyes travelled to the faces of each and every person standing before him.

"And that'll save the planet?" Cloud turned his gaze back to Barrett and sighed.

"Seems like it…"

"Awright! I'm going!" Barrett turned towards the others expectantly, awaiting their responses.

"I'll go too. There are many things I want to find out…" Aerith whispered. Cloud moved to stand next to Aerith.

"About the Ancients?"

"About many things." She said, a small and innocent smile gracing her lips. She then turned to Regret and tilted her head to the side.

"You're coming too, right?" Regret smirked and ran a hand through her long blonde hair. "I don't a choice, do I?"

"Not one!" Ivan yelled from Cloud's arms and clapped her hands together. "Of course, I'm coming too. Wherever Red goes, I do!" She reached out her hand and patted Red on the head, whom smiled up at her.

"I guess this is goodbye Midgar…" Tifa mumbled.

AVALANCHE stood on the outskirts of Midgar, the sun brushing their bodies giving off a nice warm light, unlike Midgar, which was heavily shielded by a large metal plate.

"We need a group leader for our journey. 'Course only me could be the leader." Barrett boomed with confidence, his eyes sparking with self-importance.

"You think so…?" Tifa snorted back laughter and rolled her eyes.

"I think Cloud-y should be our leader…ya know?" Ivan's was voice muffled by Cloud's shoulder.

"Yes, it would have to be Cloud." Aerith patted Barrett's shoulder apologetically, her eyes connected with Cloud's.

"Yo! But…Regret. You think I should be the leader, yeah?" Regret grunted and turned her back to the group.

"I really couldn't care less who you choose to be the leader. We have more important things to think about. Stop stuffing around and get a move on."

"Ah phooey. Your such a killjoy…" Ivan pointed an accusing finger at Regret and stuck her tongue out immaturely.

"Shit…alright, Cloud's our leader. Now, we're going to Kalm…" Barrett pointed his gun-arm northeast, towards a small village that was barely visible from where they were standing.


	4. Chapter 4

Barrett turned to Cloud and the others, opening his mouth to speak.

"Do what you want for now, but don't take too long. I'll be waiting inside the inn." With that said, he ran off into the inn. Regret blew her long hair out of her eyes and crossed her arms, examining the area around her.

"There are a few shops around here." She said, her tone bored and dull. "It would be best to stock up on items and armour while we can." Regret said, leaving the group and heading towards a small shop to the left of Kalm. Aerith placed a hand on her chin and quickly glanced around, her bright green eyes widening as she spotted a certain store. "I think we should stock up on some materia." Tifa nodded in union and grabbed Aerith's arm in a friendly manner. "Let's go shop for a bit." The two followed in the direction of Regret and disappeared from sight, leaving Red, Cloud and Ivan on their own.

"I think I shall rest for the time being." Red said, trotting towards the inn. He stopped short and turned his head to look at Cloud directly. "Take care of Ivan." Cloud nodded and turned to Ivan, who was lying tiredly in his arms. Her pale, dreamy eyes were staring at the sky tediously. A long sigh escaped her lips.

"It's no fun not being able to do anything…" She trailed off, her lip jutting out in a pout. Cloud chuckled and shook his head. "Well then, do you wanna walk for a bit?" She nodded her head furiously, her mouth exploding into a grin. Cloud slowly released her and set her on the ground, his fingers slowly withdrawing from her body. She wobbled slightly and quickly shot her arm out to Cloud for support. He instantly grabbed her shoulder and steadied her, his face contorting to one of worry.

"Maybe, we should take it slow…" He patted her back lightly and began to lead her forward. "You know what we could do?" Ivan piped up. "We could buy some clothes for me." Cloud raised an eyebrow and looked at Ivan. "I mean…I kind of need some clothes before these ShinRa rags dissipate into nothing." She mumbled, blushing slightly as she pulled at the tattered cloth covering her body. "Right." Cloud nodded, leading Ivan towards a small store to the left of Kalm. "And shoes…" He said, pointing to her bare feet that were dirty and wounded.

"Right-o!"

"Aha! I like it." Ivan said, looking herself up and down with a grin. After ploughing through masses of clothing and shoes, Ivan finally settled on one outfit suitable enough for the rough journey ahead. It was a short yet oversized brown jacket with an orange trim. On her legs were matching boots and scrunched pink socks. "Thanks Cloud." She said earnestly, sending a grateful smile his way. Cloud returned the gesture and placed an arm around her shoulder to help Ivan walk.

"This journey is going to be dangerous…" Ivan stated, casting her eyes downwards. Cloud simply nodded in response, his spikes seemingly undisturbed by his head's sudden movements.

"Someone could get hurt…" Cloud furrowed his eyebrows.

"I don't know where you're going with this." He cut in, stopping Ivan from walking. "Of course someone is going to be hurt, but it's also preventable." Ivan focused her eyes on the cobblestone path beneath her, her mouth twitching.

"Am I…am I going to be a liability? I don't want to burden the group." She shot her eyes up to stare intently at Cloud. Without giving him a chance to respond, she immediately started talking again. "I think I'm gonna head back home…yeah! That's what I'll do. I'll be cheering from the sidelines, so don't let me down. Okay?" Ivan held her hand out in front of her, her fingers spread out in a high five action. Cloud raised his hand in response, however instead of returning her high five he intertwined his fingers with hers and pulled her forward. He wrapped his free arm around Ivan's shoulders and held onto her tightly, his head falling into the crevice of her neck.

"No." Cloud whispered, his breath tickling her skin. "You're not going anywhere. I'm not letting my little sister out of my sight. Not for one minute." Ivan let out a dry laugh and slapped Cloud on the back playfully.

"I'm not actually your sister. You can't use that phrase on me." Cloud let his mouth fall into a smile.

"Well you are now." He smirked, pushing Ivan lightly. "And your not going home. Remember how you took apart that ShinRa weapon? We could use your expertise. Besides, all we have to do is buy you a weapon and your all set, I mean, your wounds are already healing." Ivan threw her arms around Cloud's neck, a genuine and true laugh escaping her throat in the process.

"Alright, I'll stay…big brother."

"GODAMMIT! Where is that chocobo head?" Barrett yelled, waving his fists angrily at random objects in the room.

"Shut Up." Regret demanded harshly, her long and slender fingers massaging her forehead. "You're giving me a headache."

"But he's fucking late!" Regret withdrew one of her swords and threw it in the direction of Barrett, a low growl escaping her lips as she did so. The sword skimmed past his head, and lodged itself into the hard, wooden wall of the inn behind him. Barrett took in a sharp breath and raised his eyebrows, shock overcoming his large body.

"Did you mean for that to hit…the wall?" He asked, his voice distinctly showing fear.

"No. I missed." Regret stated simply, sitting back down and placing her head in her hands, letting out a long sigh of frustration.

"I'm sure Cloud will be here soon." Aerith said, placing a reassuring hand on Barrett's shoulder.

The floorboards let off loud squeaks and creaks as Cloud and Ivan ambled forward. Cloud was his usual cool and composed self while Ivan grinned sheepishly, her dainty fingers pulling at random strands of hair.  
"And where have you two been?" Tifa scolded, wagging her finger at the two.

"Cloud bought me a few things." Ivan said, flashing her new weapons smugly. Strapped to both of her legs were dual pistols, and strapped to her back was a peculiar looking gun.

"What's that ya' got there?" Barrett inquired curiously, his hands prodding the fine piece of metal handiwork that sat against her back.

"It's a mana gun." She said, swatting his wandering hands away. "It absorbs Mako energy and parts of the Lifestream. The two combine to create substances similar to materia within the gun, and then POW! You have you very own gun that can shoot various elemental attacks. Pretty cool, huh?" Barrett awed in admiration and inched closer to the gun, but Ivan quickly slapped him upside the head.

"We've wasted too much time. Stop stuffing around." Regret said, cracking her knuckles.

"Right. So let's hear your story…you know, the one about Sephiroth and the crisis facing the planet. Let's hear it all." Barrett sat on the edge of one of the beds, placing his chin in the palm of his hand.

"I used to want to be like Sephiroth. So I joined SOLDIER. After working with Sephiroth on several missions, we became friends." Barrett scoffed.

"You call that a friend?"

"He's older than me, and he hardly ever talked about himself. Hmm, I guess you could call him a war buddy. We trusted each other, until one day…five years ago, I was sixteen."

Loud rain slamming against the old ShinRa truck was all that could be heard in the quiet atmosphere that had enveloped the ShinRa SOLDIERS.

"_It sure is raining hard. Hey, how are you doing Regret?" Cloud turned towards a ShinRa SOLDIER who was lazing against an empty crate in the back of the truck. She had her helmet hanging from her left hand, swinging it carelessly back and forth. Her long blonde hair was tangled and sweat matted her face._

"_I'm all right." She responded, turning her head to the side. He then turned to the other SOLDIER who was leaning out the side window, breathing heavily, his eyes closed in irritation._

"_You got motion sickness Sergeant Cross? I've never had motion sickness before, so I wouldn't know what it's like." The SOLDIER pushed himself up and spun on his heel to face Cloud._

"_I don't have motion sickness." He said, pulling off his helmet. He had auburn hair, with one pale blue eye and one dark brown eye._

"_I'm just worried. I haven't left my sister alone for this long before. Ya know, I'm all she has. I can't wait until this mission is over so I can see her again."_

_Cloud nodded, and made his way back to Regret, who now had her helmet on._

"_I'm so excited." He said, clenching his fist tightly before her._

"_Hey. Settle down." A SOLDIER with unusual long silver sent a stern look towards Cloud, who simply brushed off his command._

"_They gave me some new Materia. I can't wait to use it!" Cloud held up a shining orb of Mako infused power, his eyes gleaming in awe. Sephiroth rolled his eyes, and turned away from the young SOLDIER._

"_Just like a kid." Cloud approached Sephiroth and stood behind him._

"_I hope you're prepared." Sephiroth said, his voice harsh and deep. "This isn't a typical mission."_

"_Good!" Cloud replied, a grin breaking onto his face._

"_Why do you say that?" Sephiroth shot a disapproving look in Cloud's direction._

"_I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you. But by the time I made First Class, the war was already over. My big hopes of becoming a hero like you ended with the war. That's why I always sign up whenever there's a big mission. It's kind of a way to prove myself. Say, how do you feel, Mister Sephiroth?" Sephiroth let out a prolonged sigh. "That is irrelevant. Maybe I should brief you on our mission. We are to investigate and old Mako reactor. There have been reports of it malfunctioning and producing brutal creatures. What we're to do is locate the problem and neutralize it."_

"_Brutal creatures? Where?" Cloud asked, his eyes widened with curiosity._

"_The Mako reactor at Nibelheim." Cloud's mouth fell open slightly upon hearing the town's name._

"_Nibelheim. That's where I'm from. I-" Cloud's sentence was cut off with a loud rumbling noise, originating from outside of the truck. The ShinRa vehicle reeled forward coming to a skidding stop. Sergeant Cross stumbled forward, his face deathly pale._

"_S..Sir. Something just crashed into our truck."_

"_That would be our monster." Sephiroth unsheathed his sword and jumped out of the truck, launching himself at the fiend with killer intent._

"Sephiroth…nobody could compare to him." Regret mumbled, cutting into Cloud's story.

"He is far stronger in reality than any other story you've heard of him." Cloud stated, leaning back against the chair he was occupying.

Ivan let out a small 'humph' noise from where she was comfortably laying, and raised her eyebrows. "I've…never heard stories of this Sephiroth person. I didn't know who he was up until know. But…now I'm kind of frightened. It's like hearing stories about the bogeyman, ya know?" She buried her head into Red's mane, letting out a small whimper. "I don't like where this story is going…" She whispered, her sentence coming out as muffled words. Regret eyed Ivan, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, as if she was contemplating saying something. However, she shook her head and remained quiet.

"The whole time I was mesmerized by the way Sephiroth fought." Cloud continued. "Then, we reached Nibelheim."

"How does it feel? It's your first time back to your hometown in a long time, right? So, how does it feel? I wouldn't know because I don't have a hometown…" Sephiroth trailed off, his gaze travelling towards the sky.

"_What about you parents?" Sephiroth's attention returned to Cloud, his stare unfaltering._

"_My mother is Jenova. She died right after she gave birth to me. My father…what does it matter?"_

"Yo! Wait a minute!" Barrett interrupted. "Isn't that…um, the name of Sephiroth's mother, its Jenova. That's that damn headless spook livin' in the ShinRa building."

"That's right." Cloud confirmed, nodding his head.

"Barrett, could you please not interrupt…" Tifa asked, placing a hand on her hip in annoyance. "Okay Cloud! You can continue!"

"_I've hired a guide to take us up to the Mako reactor. Once she gets here, we head out." Sephiroth informed the rest of the SOLDIERS, who were impatiently waiting._

"_Is that her? Seems a little young, don't you think?" Regret whispered to Sergeant Cross, who simply eyed the girl walking over to them._

"_Let's hope she doesn't slow us down. I'm hoping to get this mission over as quickly as possible." Regret smiled, and patted him on the back._

"_You really miss your sister, don't you?" Sergeant Cross let out a deep breath and reached into his uniform pocket, his hands clasping around a small and square photograph of his sister._

"_She's only twelve and I left her. I paid Dio, the owner of the Gold Saucer to look after her and allow her to stay at the Ghost Hotel for as long as it took me to come home." Regret let a chuckle escape her mouth, and she smiled at Sergeant Cross, who raised his eyebrows at her amusement._

"_If she's your sister, then she'd be just like you. She'll probably be giving Dio hell right now. I'm sure she'll be fine."_

"_SOLDIERS, over here." Sephiroth called out, waving his hand in a come hither motion._

"_I'm Tifa, nice to meet you." A girl held out her hand for the SOLDIERS to shake; yet nobody responded. She withdrew her hand laughing nervously, and then turned towards Cloud, a small smile on her face._

"_Tifa? You're the guide?" He questioned, his face showing bewilderment. "It's too dangerous."_

"_There will be no problem if you protect her." Sephiroth said, placing a hand on Regret's shoulder. She looked down, letting her hair fall into her face to hide her blush._

"_Umm, excuse me, Mister Sephiroth? Please let me take one picture for a memento." A nervous man held up his camera with shaking hands. Sephiroth nodded and ushered the group into a tight line. Tifa and Cloud stood on the end, accompanied by Sergeant Cross. Sephiroth stood next to Regret, his arm draped over her shoulder comfortably._

"_Great! Thank you! I'll give you each a copy when it gets developed." With that said, the man ran off and back into town._

"_Let's go."_

"_We finally made it! We sure took the long way." Tifa stated, leading the ShinRa SOLDIERS towards the Mako Reactor. It was large, and stood alone, in a vastly empty area._

"_Tifa, you wait here." Cloud ordered, gently pushing her to the side. She swatted Cloud's hand away and frowned._

"_I'm going inside too! I wanna see!"_

"_Only authorized people are allowed in. This place is full of ShinRa's industrial secrets." Sephiroth said as he walked up the steps the led to the entrance of the Mako Reactor, his eyes focused on the door before him._

"_Sergeant Cross, Regret. Take care of the lady." Sergeant Cross grunted in response and folded his arms. "Fine…Yo, lady. Stay in my sight." He said, sitting on the ground lazily. Regret sat down next to him, folding her arms and closing her eyes._

"_Jenova is in there, right?" Cloud asked himself, examining a door that was tightly sealed. Above the door hung a sign with J E N O V A engraved on it. _

"_Over here Cloud. This here is the reason for the malfunction. This part is broken. Cloud, close the valve." Cloud reached forward and with much difficulty and straining, closed the valve. He lightly massaged his arms afterwards, jutting out his lip in pain._

"_Hmm. This system…" Sephiroth mused; investigating the surrounding area, which was filled with pods containing Mako energy. "These pods condense and freeze Mako energy. You do know what Mako energy becomes when it is condensed, right?" Cloud place a gloved hand on his chin in thought, then pointed his finger upwards in revelation._

"_It becomes Materia!"_

"_Right, normally. But Professor Hojo was here. That is why the valve was open. He put something else in those pods…take a look." Cloud leaned forward, placing his hands on the Pod for support. He peered inside the window, and in reaction to what he saw he jumped backwards. Inside the Pods were what seemed to be human beings, seemingly mutated by the Mako energy that surrounded them._

"_What…what is this?" Cloud asked, his voce racked with fear. Sephiroth let his eyes travel towards the Pods, and unreadable expression on his face._

"_Normal members of SOLDIER are humans that have been showered with Mako. You're different from others, but still human. But, what are they? They've been exposed to a high degree of Mako, far more than you."_

"_Is this some kind of monster?" Cloud ran a hand through his spiky blonde hair, his chest heaved as he tried to steady his breathing._

"_Yes. Hojo of ShinRa produced these monsters. Mutated living organisms mutated by Mako energy. That's what these monster's really are."_

"_You said…normal members of SOLDIER. You mean you're different?" Sephiroth clenched his fists, the sound of leather tightening echoed in the silence that overtook the two._

"_N...no. Was I?" Sephiroth unsheathed his sword, Masamune, and took a step back. He lowered his sword and struck the Pod with brute force._

"_Was I created this way too?" He yelled, striking the Pod again. "Am I the same as all these monsters?" He groaned in despair and struck the Pod once more._

"_I always felt different from others, even when I was small. But…not like this." He mumbled, gripping at his hair._

"Damn ShinRa! The more I hear, the more I hate em!" Barrett shouted, punching the wall behind him in rage. Tifa let out a sigh and shook her head.

"Who would have ever thought the Mako Reactor held a secret like that…" Aerith coughed uncomfortably. "ShinRa likes their secrets…"

"Obviously. What did you expect to find in the reactor, Tifa" Regret asked, leaning forward diligently.

"Anything but that." She whispered, casting her gaze to the floorboards.

"Well, after that, we returned to Nibelheim." Cloud continued, shifting in his chair. "Sephiroth disappeared. We found him inside the biggest building in Nibelheim. The ShinRa mansion…"

_Cloud walked into the basement of the ShinRa mansion, giving the room a fleeting look. Books littered the small room, tossed carelessly from their place on the shelves and pieces of broken, splintered wood were strewn across the floor. He manoeuvred his steps cautiously in attempt to remain undetected, however luck turned against him and his foot caught on a stray book, causing him to stumble forward which created a loud noise that reverberated off of the stone walls of the basement._

"_Ha! Who is it! Humph…Traitor."_

"_Traitor?" Cloud questioned, confused at Sephiroth's abnormal behaviour. Sephiroth let a dark smile pass his lips as he lifted his eyes to meet Cloud's._

"_You ignorant traitor. I'll tell you. The Cetra were an itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the planet, and move on. At the end of their harsh and hard journey they would find the Promised Land and supreme happiness. But there were those who chose to stop their migration. They took away what the Cetra had created, a land of peace without giving back one whit in return. Those were your ancestors." He raised his sword and pointed it towards Cloud accusingly._

"_Long ago, disaster struck this planet. You're ancestors escaped, they survived because they hid. The planet was saved by sacrificing the Cetra and your ancestors continued to increase. Now all that's left of the Cetra is in these reports." Cloud frowned and crossed his arms and looked at Sephiroth sceptically._

"_What does that have to do with you?"_

"_Don't you get it Cloud? An ancient name Jenova was found in a geological stratum 2000 years ago. It was named the Jenova Project. The Jenova Project's goal was to produce people with the power of the Cetra. I am the one that was produced." Cloud took a step back in disbelief, now afraid._

"_P…produced?" Sephiroth smirked and began to approach Cloud, each step echoed loudly._

"_Yes. Professor Gast, he was a genius professor. He worked on The Jenova Project. He produced me. Now, out of my way. I'm going to see my mother." Sephiroth pushed Cloud away with force and exited the ShinRa building, laughing manically. With haste, he rushed after the silver haired warrior, unleashing his Buster Sword as he did so. He exited the ShinRa mansion but stopped in his tracks as he took in the site of his hometown. Flames licked the sides of buildings, engulfing screaming townspeople in its red-hot depths. Those who were lucky enough to escape the burning houses unfortunately met their end by the flames that were awaiting them outside. Cloud widened his eyes in utmost fear as he saw the culprit of so much tragedy walking through the flames towards the Mako Reactor, throwing a smirk over his shoulder, no remorse in his eyes._

"_Sephiroth…what have you done?" Cloud's grip tightened on the hilt of his Buster Sword, his footsteps slapping loud on the ground beneath him as he followed Sephiroth to the Mako reactor._

"_Cloud?" A woman's voice sounded, catching his attention. Regret sat on the steps of the Mako reactor holding Sergeant Cross tightly in her arms; tears running freely down her face._

"_Sergeant Cross tried to stop him…he tried. S…Sephiroth…he…" She cried out, her voice breaking near the end of her sentence. "I tried…we both tried. Cross didn't make it. T…Tifa, she's inside." Cloud remained silent, his vision focused on his fallen comrade. "Cloud, go, please." Regret pleaded with a distressed tone. He simply nodded and sprinted inside, Buster Sword at the ready. Sephiroth had gone too far._

"_Mother, I'm here to see you. Please, open this door." Sephiroth was standing before the door that led to Jenova, and Tifa stood behind him with his sword in her hands._

"_Sephiroth! How could you do that to my father and all those townspeople?" Tifa screamed. She raised his sword and ran to him in a bid to gain revenge, however Sephiroth's skills overshone hers and with quick reflexes, he grabbed his sword from her hand and slashed his Masamune, the cold metal coming in contact with her skin. She let out a pain-filled scream and stumbled backwards, falling down the stairs inside of the reactor._

"_TIFA!" Cloud yelled. He took a few small steps forward and caught the girl in his arms. She groaned in pain and gripped her stomach._

"_C…cloud." She whispered, unconsciousness slowly overtaking her body. Cloud lifted Tifa up and carried her to a corner, placing her down safely. He then rushed up the stairs and into the room Jenova was being contained in, where Sephiroth stood._

"_Mother." He yelled, raising his hands. "Let's take back the planet together. I've thought of a great idea. Let's go to the promised land."_

"_SEPHIROTH!" Cloud interrupted, his stance defensive. "My family, my hometown. How could you do this to them?"_

"_Ha. They've come again, mother. With her superior power, knowledge and magic, Mother was destined to become the ruler of the planet." Sephiroth began to walk up to where Jenova was being held, his face showing no emotion._

"_Those worthless creatures are stealing the planet from you. But now I'm here so don't worry." He reached forward and let his fingers grasp the metal covering of the Jenova organism. With one swift motion, he ripped it off and tossed it to the side, revealing Jenova, a mutated creature suspended in a tube of liquid._

"_Sephiroth, what about MY sadness? My family…my friends…the sadness of having my hometown taken away from me? It's the same as your sadness."_

"_My sadness? What do I have to be sad about? I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to be the leader of this planet. I have orders to take this planet back from you stupid people for the Cetra. What am I supposed to be sad about?" Sephiroth let out a dark chuckle, and pointed his long sword at Cloud menacingly._

"_I trusted you. No, you're not the Sephiroth I used to know!" Cloud raised his sword offensively and stalked forward, ready to strike._

"And that's the end of my story." Cloud concluded, stretching his neck from side to side.

"What a damn minute! Ain't there more?" Barrett exclaimed, waving his arms around frantically. Cloud placed a hand on his hand and let out a sigh.

"I don't remember."

"What happened to Sephiroth?" Aerith asked.

"In terms of skill, I couldn't have killed him."

"Official records state Sephiroth is dead. I read it in the newspaper, but ShinRa own the newspaper, so you can't rely on that information." Tifa said. Aerith shook her head, her brown locks falling into her bright green eyes in the process. "So many things don't make sense. What about Jenova? It was in the ShinRa building, right?"

"ShinRa must have shipped it from Nibelheim to Midgar." Cloud stated.

"Someone carried out Jenova from ShinRa then. My bet was that it was Sephiroth." Regret said, running her hands through her hair in exasperation.

"DAMN! Don't none of this make sense! That's it, I'm outta here and I'm leavin' the thinking to you Cloud." Barrett threw his hands up in the air and stomped down the stairs of the inn, leaving the room.

"I…the Ancients, Cetra, Jenova, Sephiroth and myself..." Aerith followed in Barrett's footsteps and left the room. Tifa let out a sigh a followed Aerith down as well.

"What a fascinating story…" Red murmured from the corner of the room he was laying. "Yeah…but, I kind of feel sorry for Sergeant Cross. You know, he never got to go back home to his sister." Ivan said as she scratched her head and untangled herself from Red's hold, directing her vision to Regret and Cloud.

"You don't remember anything about your childhood, do you?" Regret asked, placing a hand on Ivan's shoulder. She shook her head no and looked down at her feet shyly.

"The only memories I have are of my Grandpa and Red in Cosmo Canyon, and being kidnapped by ShinRa of course. Professor Hojo said I'm suffering from memory loss. The lobe on my brain responsible for memory had taken quite a blow, and the impact messed with my mind. Well, that's what I was told."

"Sounds logical enough. Well anyway, Red, why don't you take Ivan downstairs and join the others." Red nodded and tugged at Ivan's sleeve, leading her down the stairs carefully. Regret turned to Cloud and let out a breath. She placed her fingers on her forehead and began to rub circles.

"You do realise what we have to do, right?" Cloud's blank expression made Regret roll her eyes. "I'm talking about Ivan…don't you think she looks familiar?" Cloud nodded, his eyes slowly widening as realization settled in his mind.

"Sergeant Cross…Ivan was his little sister. She…she doesn't even know."

"Exactly. And we can't tell her. Not yet at least. We have to wait until the time is right, when she is ready." Cloud hummed in response and turned towards the stairs, turning his back on Regret.

"Right. We won't dwell on it for now. So, let's go."


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey! Guys, look it's a chocobo farm! Oh, can we please stop for a bit. I've never seen a real chocobo before." Ivan bounced around in Cloud's arms, wiggling this way and that in excitement.

"We're on a mission Ivan. There is no time for any unnecessary side stops." Regret said casually, walking ahead of the group to try and lead them away from the chocobo farm.

"Oh. It would be cool to see a chocobo. They're so cute." Aerith cooed, perking up. She skipped forward and grabbed Barrett and Tifa's hands, her eyes sparkling.

"I'm sure you two would want to see them as well."

"Actually…" Tifa said, her eyes slowly travelling to the chocobo farm that was just in sight. "I've always wanted to ride one." Aerith grinned and tugged on Barrett.

"How about you Mister Barrett?" Barrett placed his free hand on his chin in thought.

"Don't get a choice, do I?"

"Not one!" Ivan yelled, flashing a grin in his direction. Ivan shifted in Cloud's arms and tilted her head to face Red, who was staring up at her dotingly. "You know, where you go I'll follow." She nodded and climbed out of Cloud's embrace and onto the ground to hug Red.

"This is why I love you buddy!" She pressed her cheek against his and let her eyes avert to Regret, who had her back turned to the group.

"Regret! C'mon! It's just a chocobo farm. What, are you afraid of Chocobo's or something?" Ivan snickered into her hand at the thought of someone as tough as Regret being scared by a harmless Chocobo.

"I am NOT scared of Chocobo's." She sneered through her teeth.

"Then let's go to the Chocobo farm! Onwards!" Ivan pointed, her face one of victory. Regret let out a growl and clenched her fist, having no other choice but to the follow the group. "You…you are SUCH a little BRAT!" She screamed, picking up a rock and hurling it at Ivan who was hitching a ride on Red's back. She looked over her shoulder and smiled innocently.

"Don't be such a cranky pants Regret."

An old woman slowly approached AVALANCHE, a kind smile on her wrinkled face.

"Hello, may I help you all?" Ivan put her hand up almost immediately, her whole face lightening.

"Hiya! We'd like to rent some Chocobo's please!" The old lady's smile faded and along with hers, Ivan's did too.

"I'm sorry, we have no Chocobo's for rent at the moment." Regret scoffed and leaned on the fence, raising an eyebrow. "A chocobo farm with no Chocobo's, that's kind of pointless…" She said sardonically.

Ivan groaned in depression and dropped her head, her fiery hair covering her face as she did so.

"However, you can purchase some Chocobo Greens and catch some Chocobo's if you'd like." Ivan immediately perked up again and looked up at Cloud, her eyes pleading. "Oh please Cloud, please? Can we?" Regret coughed coolly at Ivan and rolled her eyes. "What are you, bi-polar?"

"Shush, ya meanie." She yelled, raising her fist with an annoyed look. She returned her innocent gaze to Cloud and jutted out her bottom lip.

"So can we?" Cloud let out an aggravated sigh and nodded in accord.

"Okay, I'll just go fetch some Greens for you. Wait here." With that, the old woman hobbled off into the barn, disappearing from sight.

"Hey Ivan. How old are you?" Tifa asked, genuinely curious.

"Oh, I'm 48." Barrett snorted and let a loud chuckle out at her response. Ivan let out a small laugh and shook her head.

"Kidding. I'm 18." Tifa widened her eyes and raised her eyebrows, shock becoming her main expression. "Sorry. I thought you were younger. I mean, your kind of short."

"Yeah, I know. Just adds to my cuteness, don't ya think?" Cloud smiled and ruffled her hair. "You are pretty cute."

"Oh please." Regret said, pushing herself from off of the fence. "She's secretly a demon child in disguise." Ivan frowned at Regret and stuck her tongue out at her.

"Seriously, how old are YOU? You act like such an old lady."

"In all honesty, I've lost count of how old I am. It's been so long…" Ivan placed a finger on her lips and tilted her head, the charms in her hair jingling in unison.

"So long since what? How does someone lose count o-"

"I have the Chocobo Greens here." The old woman from before interrupted Ivan's meddling, a yellow bucket in her hands full of odd bean looking shapes of different colours and sizes.

"Yo…shouldn't greens be…well, green?" Barrett said peering at the contents. Ignoring Barrett's comment, the old woman pushed the bucket into Ivan's waiting arms. "Alright, it's time for some Chocobo hunting!"

"Hunting?" Aerith whispered, her eyes filled with concern.

"Uh, I meant catching…HAHA!" Regret shook her head and following closely.

"That girl has way too much energy."

Regret took in a sharp breath, a small sweat bead rolling down the side of her face. Her hand began to turn white due to the strong grip she had on her item of choice. She took a small, miniscule step forward, attempting to maintain the element of surprise.

With brute force, she threw the item forward, hitting her target accurately. A loud squeaking noise erupted from her target and it took off running in the opposite direction.

"I don't think you're supposed to try and kill the Chocobo…" Aerith scratched the back of her head awkwardly as Regret glared at the Chocobo's retreating yellow behind.

"It had it coming. I don't like…yellow Chocobo's." She huffed crossly, biting her bottom lip.

"Uh…but aren't all Chocobo's yellow?" Aerith asked, confusion dripping from her voice.

"No. There are different coloured Chocobo's. Each coloured Chocobo has different abilities." Aerith made an 'ah' sound in understanding, which then turned into an 'oh' as her eyes landed on a red blob of feathers in the distance.

"Regret, is that a red Chocobo?" She said, pointing to it. Regret turned in the direction of Aerith's finger and widened her eyes at the mass of feathers.

"A red Chocobo…let's catch it."

Ivan stood with her arms crossed, a pout on her lips. Her glazed eyes observed the area around her for movement but to no avail.

"I don't see any Chocobo's." She said, her usually cheerful voice now dull. Her hair swayed gently in the wind as she remained in the same position, her eyes repeatedly following a routine path. However, her eyes stopped their searching quickly as she felt a nudge against her back. Ivan curved around, her eyes now coming to life with excitement. In front of her stood a large black Chocobo with deep and menacing eyes stared intently at her.

"Hi there!" She chirped, ignoring the way the Chocobo towered over her. It stepped forward, a low 'wark' emitting from the depths of its throat.

"Can you be my Chocobo?" The black chocobo nudged Ivan harshly, causing her to stumble backwards and fall to the ground, landing on her leg injury. She cried out in pain, tears threatening to escape her eyes. The Chocobo came closer. It lowered its head and it's feathers stood up proudly, ready to attack. Intimidation overwhelmed Ivan and she let out a whimper, tears falling freely from her eyes.

"RED! CLOUD!" She screamed out, fear etched in her voice. With speed, the Chocobo lunged forward and on instinct, Ivan closed her eyes and threw her arms over her head. A small number of seconds past and Ivan remained untouched. She withdrew her arms and opened her eyes, looking back and forth. She then turned to look behind her only to see the Chocobo attacking a fiend viciously.

"Whoa…" She whispered, her eyes wide in amazement. The fiend retreated and the Chocobo turned to Ivan. It leaned down and nuzzled her wounded leg, being careful not to irritate it further, then moved to nuzzle her head.

"You were only trying to save me…" She reached up and rubbed the impressive Chocobo's neck.

"I need to get back to the other's…" She mumbled to herself, planting her hands firmly on the ground to try and push herself up. Upon standing up, pain shot up her leg and she fell back screaming. The Chocobo quickly caught her shirt with its beak and pulled her up, hauling her high onto its back.

"Thank you…" She managed to choke out, her leg resting softly against the Chocobo's wing. "I think I'll name you…Zeus. Like the King of Gods, almighty and powerful." The Chocobo warked happily in response. It raised it's feathered wings to shield Ivan, and took off into a sprint towards the Chocobo farm.

"Where is she? Yo, I'm really startin' to worry" Barrett said, holding onto the reins of his yellow Chocobo. At this point of time, everyone had caught a Chocobo and had returned to the Chocobo ranch. Everyone except Ivan.

"Maybe we should go and look for her." Tifa suggested, pulling her Chocobo away from nuzzling Regret's Red Chocobo.

"Oh dear…" The old woman said, peering off into the distance. "That horrible Chocobo has come back." A black Chocobo was trotting towards the farm, it's wings hiding Ivan from sight.

"That black Chocobo has been terrorizing all other Chocobo's around this area. It's undomesticated and wild." As the Chocobo neared, it withdrew its wings revealing Ivan, her eyes closed and a small smile on her face. Her arms were buried around the Chocobo's neck, safe and secure.

"Ivan!" Cloud shouted, running forward, his sword drawn. "Get away from that Chocobo! It's untamed!" Ivan slowly opened her eyes and stifled a yawn, a laugh escaping her lips. She waved her hand dismissively, her eyes filled with delight.

"No need to worry Cloud! Zeus here may look like a total baddy, but he's not." The Chocobo eyed Cloud warily and stepped around him, warking lowly in caution.

"What happened to your leg?" Aerith asked, staring at a large bruise that began to develop on her pale skin.

"Uh…Zeus here was trying to protect me from a fiend and pushed me outta the way. But, I fell on the leg that already had bruising and it got…kind of worse."

"Can you walk on it?" Aerith asked, rubbing Ivan's leg gently.

"I can try…" She mumbled, shifting on Zeus. He reeled his neck back and hooked his beak onto Ivan's jacket, pulling her off his back and placing her on the ground with care. She balanced her weight, and leaned into Zeus for support, knowing her own body wouldn't be able to support it's own weight. She took a small step forward and tightened her eyes, pain overwhelming her body.

"It doesn't feel too good…" She said. Her voice strained through the pain.

Aerith knelt down and leaned in, examining Ivan's leg.

"Cure." She whispered, sending warm green Materia waves through Ivan's being. She fell limp, the pain in her leg intensifying.

"It hurts! AERITH! Stop!" She screamed, her hands gripping Zeus' feathers roughly.

Regret placed her hands on Ivan to steady her and prevent her from falling. Aerith stood, her eyebrows arched in surprise and worry.

"What happened?" She whispered, staring at her hands in fear. Regret narrowed her eyes and focused on Ivan's leg, which now had intense purple bruises covering her entire leg.

"The Mako in Ivan's body…" Regret trailed off, her eyes travelling to Ivan's eyes, which were filled with tears. "The Mako is reacting with Aerith's materia negatively." "Wait. Materia is pretty much Mako, just condensed, right? Why would it react that way? In any case, there shouldn't be any reaction at all." Cloud said, laying a hand on Ivan's leg curiously.

"There must be something in Ivan's body that is weakening her immune system and making her more vulnerable to the dangerous chemicals in Mako that her body would normally be able to handle." Red turned to Ivan and placed his paws at her feet, staring up at her intently.

"What exactly did Professor Hojo do to you?" He asked.

"Jenova Cells…" She whispered, hanging her head lowly in shame. "He injected Jenova Cells directly into my body. It wasn't his original intention, but after he…he…I almost died. It was a last resort." Regret gripped onto Ivan tightly, persuading her to continue.

"What did he do to you? How did you almost die?" Ivan took in a deep shaky breath and turned around to bury her face into Zeus' feathers.

"He…" She trailed off and clutched the ends of her jacket, embarrassingly hiding her exposed skin. Regret narrowed her eyes and pulled Ivan forward into a hug, rage coursing through her veins.

"How could he…that sick…disgusting pig." She spat, rubbing Ivan's back comfortingly. Cloud struck the dirt with his sword, a loud grunting noise emitting from his throat. "I'll kill that man…" He roared, tightening his grip on the sword.

"How many times did he…touch you?" Tifa asked, finding it hard to say those words. Ivan let out a small whimper and clutched at her jacket insecurely.

"Too many times." She whispered, holding back further tears. Regret released her hold on Ivan and turned to her own Chocobo, hoisting herself up.

"Hojo, ShinRa and everything that circles it. They will be sorry. Just you watch." She mumbled, kicking her Chocobo and sending it into a sprint. Ivan fell to the ground, her eyes blank and emotionless, and her mouth in a tight line. She reached her hands up and covered her face, hiding the shame that began to appear.

"Ivan…" Red whispered, pushing his head into her shoulder. "It will all be okay dear." His tail wrapped around her body and warmed her in a comforting embrace.

The rest of AVALANCHE could only stand and stare, all rendered speechless.


	6. Chapter 6

"G'morning everyone!" Ivan yelled, bouncing out of her room and towards AVALANCHE, who were seated at the dining table. After the events that previously unfolded, the group decided it was best to rest for a while, and so the old woman running the Chocobo Farm offered them a few rooms in her home, for a small fee.

"Your awfully happy considerin' what happened yesterday." Barrett stated from his seat. He was leaned back comfortably in his chair and his feet were propped up on the table, much to the displeasure of the Chocobo Farm's owner.

"Well, it's better to be happy than moping around all the time, isn't it? So, I've learnt to have a smile on my face even when I'm feeling like poop." Ivan exclaimed, cutely twirling a strand of hair in-between her fingers.

"That's a good way to look at life." Regret said admiringly. She took a sip of the cup of tea in front of her and let a smirk grace her features. "It's just too bad your annoying as hell for anyone to enjoy it." Ivan let her jaw drop slightly and narrowed her blue eyes, sending a glare toward Regret.

"And just when we think there's an improvement…this happens." Tifa said, laughing awkwardly as she sat in-between the two glares.

"Well, in any case, we're so glad that you're okay now." Aerith placed a warm hand on Ivan's shoulder, smiling down at her.

"Well then, shall we go?" Red pointed his noise to the Chocobo's waiting outside, tied to the farm fence. Zeus was impatiently pulling at his reins, shaking the entire fence.

"Yeah, let's mosey." Regret ruffled Ivan's hair as she stood and walked out the door, heading towards Blaise, her Red Chocobo.

"This place is so creepy…" Aerith mumbled, pulling at the reins of her Chocobo to stop it from walking any further. AVALANCHE had ventured into Mythril Cave, a small green cave that was the only pass to their destination. The rock and stone inside were tinted an unusual green, and the wind from outside echoed within, causing moaning like sounds to echo throughout the cave.

"Hey guys, there's someone over there…" Ivan pointed a dainty finger North, near the cave's exit. Indeed, there were people there. ShinRa employees to be more precise.

"ShinRa scum." Regret announced, rolling her eyes. Upon hearing this, the three ShinRa employees dressed in elegant navy suits spun, coming face to face with AVALANCHE.

"Turks. What are you doing here?" Cloud asked, his tone of voice firm. A blonde female Turk stepped forward and placed a hand on her hips, flipping her short hair backwards. "Our job is to find where Sephiroth is headed and try to stop him every step of the way. Wait a minute; it should be the other way around. Because YOU are all getting in our way!"

"Elena, you talk too much." Tseng said harshly, shooting a look towards the female Turk. Ivan laughed at this, which caused Elena to curse the young girl under her breath.

"There is no need to inform them of our orders. Now go, and don't forget to file your report." He said, now talking to both Rude and Elena.

"Right! Very well then! Rude and I will go after Sephiroth who's headed for Junon Harbour!" With that said, Elena and Rude exited the cave. Tseng let out a low sigh and ran a hand through his perfectly shaped black hair.

"She doesn't understand, the idiot." Tseng then followed, exiting the cave quickly.

"Junon Harbour, huh? Looks like that's our next destination." Cloud stated, waving AVALANCHE towards the cave exit.

"Zeus, not so fast!" Ivan yelled, her small body holding onto Zeus' reins with all the power her little body could muster. The Chocobo skidded to a halt and turned to face the rest of AVALANCHE, who were kicking their Chocobo's into high speed to keep up with Ivan.

"Hey Zeus, you can't run- oof!" Ivan suddenly felt a weight on her stomach and before she knew it, she was falling backwards, headed straight for the grassy ground beneath her.

"What was – OUCH!" She screamed, feeling something knock her upside the head.  
"Yo! What's going o- FUCK!" Barrett cussed, feeling a weight press against his back causing him to fall forward. Regret closed her eyes in concentration, withdrawing her swords maliciously.

"Something's up." Cloud said, glancing around cautiously, his Buster Sword drawn.

"Regret, look out!" Aerith warned, spotting a figure heading at lightning speed toward Regret. She quickly spun, bringing her sword up to come into contact with the mystery figure, using her power to launch the attacker into a tree.

"Bring it!" She yelled, raising her swords in offence. Barrett held up his gun-arm and began to shoot at the figure who dodged each bullet with quick succession. Tifa pushed herself forward and sent a punch towards the figure, only to miss a stumble into Aerith. Zeus quickly pulled Ivan onto his back while she withdrew her pistols, shooting mercilessly at the attacker. She landed a shot, and the figure toppled over, a high-pitched scream erupting from it. Regret quickly ran forward and seized the figure in her arms, allowing herself to take in a good view. It was a young, skinny girl with short black hair clutching a Shuriken in her hand with a tight hold.

"Put me down! You spiky-headed jerk! One more time, let's go one more time!" She screeched, flailing her arms about, trying to free herself from Regret's squeeze.

"Shut it!" Ivan shouted angrily, aiming her pistols directly at the girl. "Ya could've seriously hurt someone, ya know!" The black haired girl groaned and flailed some more, kicking her legs wildly.

"C'mon! Let's fight! Fight I said! C'mon, what's the matter? You're pretty scared of me, huh?"

"Petrified…" Regret said, sarcasm dripping from her voice.  
"Ha! I knew it. Well I won't bother fighting you all again, too much of a hassle. I'll just be on my way." The girl managed to fight her way out of Regret's strong arms, and began to walk away casually.

"Interesting…" Cloud said, confusion and amusement playing on his face simultaneously.

"What was that?" The girl asked, turning back to AVALANCHE. "Did you say you want me to stay?"

"No, we di-" Tifa began to speak but the girl cut her off with a booming laugh.

"You want my help cause I'm so awesome! Ain't that right?"

"We never said-"

"Ha! Well, if you want me to join you guys so bad, I can't refuse! All right, I'll go with you." Cloud simply shrugged and led his Chocobo away. The others began to follow, ignoring the annoying girl who had a devilish grin on her face.

"I like her…" Ivan said, smiling as she led Zeus away as well.

"Huh? HEY! WAIT!" She called out, running after the group. "I haven't even told you my name yet. It's Yuffie, nice to meet ya!" She stopped running and placed a hand on her chin in a thoughtful pose, a sly smile creeping onto her face.

"Ha, just as I planned. Now all I have to do is a little of this and a little of that and…HA!" With a grin on her face, Yuffie chased after the others.

"There's Junon…" Cloud said, nodding his head in the direction of a small town. Above the town small town stood a large metal plate, covered with various buildings and roads.

"Whoa…looks like they built a city over a town…" Ivan exclaimed in wonder, staring at the large buildings that stood before them.

"We'll have to leave our Chocobo's here." Regret said, sliding off of Blaise. Ivan's eyes widened and she hugged Zeus tightly, her lip quivering.

"Nuh-uh! I'm keeping Zeus with me." Regret let out a groan of exasperation and nudged Cloud's shoulder.

"Reason with her, please." Cloud turned to Ivan who was stroking Zeus' feathers gently. "Cloud…we can disguise him." She said, holding tightly onto Zeus' reins, giving no indication of letting go.

"I can piece together something to disguise him as one of ShinRa's trained Chocobo's. Look, there's loads of scrap metal around." She said, waving her arms in the air dramatically.

"If you do…disguise Blaise as well. I'm starting to like this Chocobo." She said, chuckling as Blaise cooed and rubbed its head against her shoulder.

"Ya got five minutes…" Barrett looked at his wrist, which held a metaphorical watch. Ivan laughed victoriously and slid of Zeus carefully, being mindful of her injuries. She limped over to the scrap metal, delving into what was her heaven. She loved putting things together and tinkering with various scraps and leftovers. It was her speciality.

-

"TA-DA!" Ivan yelled out, spreading her arms wide, a large smile on her face.

"Told ya I'd disguise them." She said, knocking her hand on Zeus' chocobo armour.

"You did a good job." Regret said, admiring Ivan's handiwork.

"Right. Ya did it, so let's go." Barrett said grumpily, his arms folded over his broad chest. Ivan groaned and kicked Zeus into a walk, following Barrett, sticking her tongue out at him as she did.

Regret mounted Blaise, patting his soft feathers. "Remind me to thank Ivan." She said, smiling to herself. "It's good to keep you close…" She whispered, careful not to let anyone hear her letting out her emotions.

"HEY! How come I don't get a Chocobo?" Yuffie screamed, flapping her arms wildly about behind the group. Regret looked at the ninja over her shoulder and glared.

"Go catch one then. But if you run off to go do it, you know we're just going to leave you. So I suggest you walk like everyone else." Yuffie groaned unnecessarily loud and began to drag her feet across the dirt beneath her.

"Moan and groan all you want, I still won't sympathise." Regret stated coldly, sending a blank stare towards Yuffie. She winced under the older girl's gaze than turned to Ivan with a begging stare.

"Can I ride with you? Oh pretty please. PLEASE?" Yuffie whined, poking and prodding Ivan's exposed legs.

"Sorry Yuffie…" Ivan said, eyeing the girl. "I don't think Zeus will let anyone else ride him except for me." Yuffie let out a huff of frustration and threw her hands up in defeat.

"Hey…" Ivan murmured, her eyes widening as she spotted gravity-defying hair. Yuffie looked up at Ivan curiously, her mouth twisted into a smirk,

"Ya know…Cloud's head looks like a Chocobo." Ivan broke out into a devious grin, her eyes glinting with mischief as she turned to Yuffie. Yuffie returned the look, than took off in a sprint in Cloud's direction.

"Hey Cloud! CATCH ME!"


	7. Chapter 7

"So this is Junon huh?" Tifa said, examining the run-down area around her. A grunt sounded behind her and Tifa spun to see Barrett, his fist clenched and his face contorted into one of anger.

"No. This place ain't Junon…" He grumbled, punching a rusted light pole beside him. A large creak escaped from the pole, the contact causing it to shake violently. "This place is the town buried beneath Junon. ShinRa, they had NO right to destroy this town." He yelled, his voice echoing down the empty streets of the town.

"Shut up." Regret said, her eyes glancing in random directions cautiously. "Do you hear that?" She asked, staring off into the distance. "It's waves. There's a beach nearby."

"A beach? I've never been to the beach!" Ivan squealed in excitement, with Zeus cooing to mimic her tone.

"Junon's known as the Harbour Town. It's one of two places with a dock. Of course there's a beach nearby." Cloud stated matter-of-factly. He sighed and began to walk in the direction of the waves, his arms folded and his expression unreadable. "It won't look like what you expect."

Black. The water was black. The once beautiful beach water was coated with a thick layer of murky oil. Zeus stomped his feet against the beach sand, kicking away rubbish and debris that had fallen from the city above and washed up on the shore.

"Look at this place. It looks…dead." Ivan whispered, here eyes wide as she took in the sight that lay before her.

"He-ey! Mr Dolphin! My name is Priscilla! Now you say it!" A young girl, around the age of six or seven sat by the water, waving her arms out to a dolphin that was swimming away.

"Excuse me…" Aerith said, a warm tone in her voice. The little girl turned around her happy expression dropping as she took in AVALANCHE'S appearance. She took a small step backwards, her hands shooting downwards to clutch her dress in fear.

"Who are you? You work for ShinRa, don't you?" She yelled, her voice being drowned out by the harsh waves. Yuffie stepped forward awkwardly, scratching the back of her head. "No way kid! We would never work for ShinRa!"

"I don't believe you." She screamed, pointing an accusing finger. A large wave crashed behind Priscilla, causing her to flinch, her arms flinging around her own body.

"WARK!" Zeus began to shudder violently, the feathers on his neck standing up. He warked loudly and bit air, pulling wildly at his reins. Ivan squealed lightly and held on tight, afraid he might fling her into the water.

"ZEUS! Calm down!" She screamed, pulling at his reins to restrain him.

"He senses something dangerous." Regret said darkly, pulling out her swords.

"Wh…what are you doing?" Priscilla whispered, her eyes beginning to water. She began to back away, closer to the water that was thrashing about violently behind her.

"Don't go near the water!" Regret shouted, raising her swords. Cloud withdrew his sword, his eyes flashing towards the water.

Priscilla shook her head and turned to face the water. Suddenly an ear-piercing scream filled the air. Within seconds Priscilla was on the ground, unconscious and injured.

"A FIEND!" Ivan shouted, pulling out her guns and pointing them at the monster that had emerged from the black abyss of oil. It was large and dragon-like, it's body extending through the water as far as the eye could see.

"Fight it!" Regret commanded, sprinting towards the fiend at full speed. Zeus bounded forward in pursuit and jumped onto the fiend's head; barely missing it's sharp-toothed mouth.

"Red!" Aerith yelled, waving him over. He sprinted towards the flower girl, who had her staff out defensively. "We have to get Priscilla out of here! It's too dangerous." Aerith said pointing to the girl who was close by the fiend's body. Red raced forward and grabbed her shirt by his teeth. He flung the girl onto his back and turned to race away but the fiend's tail smacked down onto the ground before him, stopping Red in his tracks. Aerith raised her staff in the air and struck the fiend's tail with a lightning spell. Momentarily stunned, the tail remained paralysed. Red took this opportunity to jump over the scaled tail, escaping possible death. Just as quick as the tail had been paralysed, it began to move again, thrashing wildly in all directions.

"Time to unleash the big gun!" Ivan yelled. "Zeus, you have to jump!" Without hesitance, Zeus launched himself into the air with Ivan pulling out her Mana Gun mid-air. She pumped the nozzle and aimed it at the fiend's head, a murderous glint in her pale eyes.

"Say goodbye." She whispered, an amused tone playing in her voice. She pulled the trigger, releasing a blast of thunderous electricity towards the fiend, the power enveloping its whole body. Zeus landed on the beach sand roughly, his body skidding backwards from the force of the blast. The fiend fell limp onto the sand banks; it's body sparking with the after effects of the electricity.

"Whoa…" Yuffie exclaimed, her eyes wide with amazement. "Where can I get me one of those guns?"

"PRISCILLA!" A voice sounded caked in desperation and concern. An old man came running down the steps towards the beach, his eyes darting in a searching manner.

"MY DEAR PRISCILLA!" He shouted, running towards AVALANCHE who were circled around the girl.

"This is bad…do you think she's dead?" Tifa said, looking down at Priscilla. Her dress was ripped due to the harshness of the jagged beach rocks and debris and the oil in the water had caused her skin to stain an ugly grey colour. The old man fell to his knees and let his head thump against Priscilla's chest, his ear hovering directly over her heart. "She's not breathing…hey you! Young man, CPR, now!" He said jutting Cloud's chest violently.

"He's a feisty old man…" Regret stated with a smirk adorning her tough features.

"Well…at least he's not a grumpy old ogre like you." Ivan exclaimed, smiling innocently at Regret. Regret grunted angrily and lifted her hand, sharply smacking Ivan over her head. Zeus angrily warked and proceeded to peck Regret's head but she quickly slapped his beak away.

"Don't hit my Chocobo!" Ivan squealed throwing her arms around the Chocobo's neck. Regret just rolled her eyes and stuck her middle finger up at Ivan, who scoffed.

"You're such a man, ne?"

"SHUT UP." Regret yelled, shoving the redheaded girl off of her chocobo. Red's instincts picked up and he quickly caught Ivan on his back. His head quickly snapped to Regret and he shook it disapprovingly.

"Ivan is injured. You should not treat her roughly"

"She was asking for it. Girl, you need to learn to shut your trap." Ivan rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out.

"And YOU need to learn to lighten up."

"SHUT UP."

"Lighten UP."  
"Just SHUT UP."  
"Maybe you should just LIGHTEN UP!"

"I agree with Ivan. You act like you have a stick up your ass." Yuffie said, leaning forward curiously. Regret groaned in annoyance and pushed Yuffie's head away violently.

"Old ogre woman. Be careful, she might eat you in your sleep." Yuffie murmured to Ivan, who chuckled in response.

"I HEARD THAT!"  
Cloud shook his head at the girl's bickering and turned his attention to Priscilla. He took a deep breath in and placed his mouth over hers, gently sending oxygen into her lungs.  
Once.  
Twice.  
Three Times.

"Uuugh…" Priscilla cracked open one eye. The old man drew in a breath and leaned forward to wrap his arms around her.

"Priscilla…just rest." He whispered to her. The old man picked Priscilla up and began to walk back towards the town but suddenly stopped short and turned to face AVALANCHE.

"Thank you for helping. You should all rest at the town's inn; for free of course. Take it as a thank you from the entire town." With that said, he walked up the stairs and disappeared into the town.

"Let's go rest…"Aerith piped up, placing a hand on Cloud's shoulder and smiling warmly at him. He nodded in accord and began to walk away, his hand beckoning the others to follow him, with Ivan lingering at the back of the group.

"Hey Red…" She called out limply, her body resting lifelessly on Zeus' back. Red tilted his head to watch Ivan carefully. "I don't feel so good." She whispered, raising her hand to massage her head in circular motions. "My head…it hurts." Red stopped walking and stood in front of Zeus to stop him from preceding any further.

"Ivan?" He inquired, his eyes searching her drooping ones. Ivan's eyes closed and she slowly slid off of Zeus' back and onto the ground, her head smacking roughly against the sand and rocks.

"IVAN!"


	8. Chapter 8

Darkness. All she could see was darkness.

"Red?" Ivan called out, waving her arms blindly in front of her. She stretched out her fingers in an attempt to grab onto something, but only grasped air.

"Cloud?" She called out Cloud's name only to receive no reply.

"Anybody?" Ivan brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs in a secure ball. She let out a shaky breath and wept silently, her embrace her only sanctuary.

Silver. A flash of silver danced across her vision, disappearing as soon as it appeared. Ivan sat up, her curious eyes peering into the darkness intensely.

"Who's there?" She whispered, holding her hands in front of her in fear. Ivan sat on her knees and leaned forward, narrowing her eyes.

"Who's there?" She yelled, glancing around in caution.

"Hello my dear…"

Ivan let out a small squeal and spun around only to see nothing but darkness.

"Jenova is waiting…"

Ivan placed her hands over her eyes and let out a scream. She was scared. She was alone.

"Beware of those closest to you…"

She felt a shiver go up her spine but shook it off, keeping her hands planted firmly over her eyes.

"They might just end up betraying you in the end…"

"Go away." She whispered, small sobs emitting from he throat.

"Jenova is waiting…open your eyes."

"No, no, NO! GO AWAY!" Ivan let out another scream followed by a long and shaking sigh.

"Open your eyes…"

Ivan screamed, opening her eyes.

"Ivan?" Aerith stood in front of her, her eyes wide with worry. Ivan pulled her body into a sitting position and glanced around the room with a wary disposition. Her eyes travelled across the faces of AVALANCHE.

"What…-" She began, but a sharp pain atop of her head stopped Ivan from talking. Her hands flew to the source of the pain only to find to soft, triangular 'things' on her head. Upon feeling something move behind her, she spun around to find a long fiery tail attached to her backside. She waved it back and forth, confusion waving over her entire being.

"What happened to me?" She asked, still shaken from before.

"We could ask you the same thing." Barrett replied, pulling up a chair beside the bed Ivan was sitting in.

"What's going on? I have ears like a dog and a tail. THAT CAN'T BE NORMAL!" Ivan yelled, jumping out of bed and latching onto Cloud's shirt.

"It's normal for me…" Red spoke up.

Regret looked from Ivan to Red and raised her eyebrows in interest.

"It seems as if Red's DNA that was injected into you during ShinRa's experimentation has fused with your own." Regret stated, rubbing Ivan's ear in consideration.

"Ah…" Ivan moaned, her ear twitching in delight at Regret's touch. She let go of Cloud's shirt and fell back as her tail began to sweep back and forth. "I could get used to this." Regret quickly withdrew her hand and rolled her eyes.

"Don't get used to it." Ivan pouted, then quickly shook her head averting her attention to a loud trumpet sounding outside. Her ears perked up and she stood on the bed, ignoring her injuries the best she could.

"What's that noise?" Red asked, turning his head in the same direction as Ivan.

"Let's go find out." Cloud ordered, leading the group out of the inn and onto the streets of the run down town. Ivan remained behind with Zeus, who trotted over to her the second the others left.

"I don't know what to do…" She whispered to herself. "I don't know if I should tell the others about my dream or not. I don't think it matters…I mean, it was just a dream." Zeus pulled Ivan onto his back by her jacket and they made their way to the door. "I guess I won't let it bother me or anyone else. A dream is a dream, nothing more and nothing less." She said while Zeus walked out. The door closed with a loud creak, leaving the inn empty and silent.

Dreams don't always last the night…

"Priscilla!" Yuffie called out, waving at the little girl who was standing outside a house with her grandfather watching from the porch. Priscilla waved shyly and approached AVALANCHE, her eyes downcast.

"Umm, th…thanks for saving me. I'm sorry I mistook you for those ShinRa people." Aerith smiled and placed her hand atop of Priscilla's head, smiling at her like a mother. "It's okay. As long as you're feeling better." Priscilla nodded and smiled at Aerith, immediately becoming attached to her.

"Hey, do you know what that music is? It sure sounds lively." Yuffie asked, pointing upwards at nothing in particular.

"Grandfather told me that they're rehearsing the reception for the new ShinRa president." A look of surprise crossed Cloud's face.

"Rufus ShinRa is here?" He asked.

"Yeah, I hate him. I hate all of ShinRa. Pa and Ma told me that the beach used to be really pretty when they were small. Then ShinRa came and built that city over our town. It blocked out the sun and our beach water got polluted. I hate ShinRa so much!" Priscilla exclaimed, raising her fist in anger.

"Your not the only one." Regret said, glancing up at the city above them.

"Rufus is here. Do you think he's thinking of crossing the ocean as well?" Aerith asked Cloud.

"Cloud, didn't you finish Rufus off?" Red asked, raising an eyebrow. Cloud ignored Red and turned towards the beach.

"Think we could climb the electrical tower to reach the city above?" He asked nobody in particular.

"Mr Dolphin could help you get up there!" Priscilla shouted, tugging on Cloud's arm. "If you touch the water directly, you'll get shocked. There's a high voltage current from the tower running underneath. But if you ride on Mr Dolphins back, he'll flip you up there."

"A high voltage current huh? Looks like a job for Cloud Strife. He IS the leader after all…" Regret said smartly, smirking at Cloud whose mouth was agape.

"Yeah. Better leave it to Cloud." Aerith said, poking his shoulder.

"Be careful Cloud!" Ivan said, holding back her laughter at Cloud's expression. He dropped his head in defeat and trudged his way towards the beach, loudly sighing in annoyance.

"There is another way…" Priscilla said once Cloud was out of sight. "My Pa used to work for ShinRa. He has all his old uniforms. You could disguise yourself and use the ShinRa elevator…"

After a near death experience with the high voltage tower, Cloud finally made it to the city above. He wandered through to a large building where a handful of ShinRa soldiers were exiting. He quickly ran through the gap in the door before it closed and took in his surroundings.

"A locker room…" He mused, eyeing the area around him. Cloud opened a locker and smirked. He reached in and pulled out a SOLDIER uniform, holding it against himself. "Just like old times. Looks like I'll be in disguise…"

"SOLDIERS, the President is here. Ten hut!" Cloud stood in disguise among other SOLDIERS and saluted the President as he walked by.

"Is the ship ready?" Rufus asked Hediegger, ShinRa's head of Urban Development, who was standing in front of the entire SOLDIER army with a smug look on his face.

"Yes sir. We're ready to leave port!" Hediegger answered in his gruff and tough voice.

"Good, and Hediegger…be on the lookout. There is a man in a black cape roaming the city."

Hediegger coughed uncomfortably.

"A black cape. You don't mean…Sephiroth?" Rufus nodded.

"Once word gets out that Sephiroth is here, Cloud and his posse will show up too. Be on guard." Hediegger laughed loudly.

"GYAHAHAHA! We'll crush em like a bug!"

"Don't let them get in our way." Rufus said sternly, folding his arms.

"Leave it to me. GYAHAHAHA!" Rufus began to enter the ship, but quickly turned around with a frown on his face.

"And stop that stupid laugh." He turned back around and boarded the ship, leaving Hediegger angry and shaking. Hediegger grunted and ran after the president.

"Hey…" A SOLDIER next to Cloud whispered in his ear. "It's me…Yuffie. Everyone else is on the ship in disguise." She informed him. Cloud nodded and ran into the ship pulling Yuffie along with him. He ducked behind a large crate and Yuffie followed suite.

"We have to lay low. Rufus is expecting us." He whispered to Yuffie, who nodded in understanding. "So don't bunch up in groups. Make sure everyone is scattered."

"YES SIR!" Yuffie said, saluting Cloud with enthusiasm.

The ship suddenly lurched forward causing Yuffie to groan and grab her stomach. Cloud looked at her oddly, but Yuffie just smiled and waved her hand dismissively.

"I'm okay. I just get seasick, that's all…uugh." She gripped the crate in front of her and puked, sending food chunks in every direction. Cloud gagged and closed his eyes, trying to block out the smell and sight of Yuffie's vomit.

"Gross…"


	9. Chapter 9

Cloud wandered around the ship casually, his disguise hiding him well from higher authority. He took a few steps this way and that, not fully knowing where he was headed. After all, he hadn't been on the ship before. He turned to a set of metal stairs that matched the rest of the ship and began to ascend upwards, making his way to the deck of the ship. He ventured forward and stopped short as a giant Chocobo stood in his way.

"Sir, I believe you are required down the other end of the ship." The SOLDIER sitting on top of the Chocobo said with a strong and demanding voice. Cloud raised an eyebrow but regardless, followed orders and tried to make his way around the Chocobo and SOLDIER.

"Cloud!" The SOLDIER piped up in an oddly feminine voice. "How did you not realise it was me? I must be a pretty good actor, ya know?" The SOLDIER moved his helmet a bit to reveal the face beneath. Ivan smiled down at Cloud. "It's me, Ivan!" She said, a grin erupting onto her face. "But seriously, go to the other end of the ship. Barrett's there and God knows he'll probably get us caught." Cloud breathed a sigh of relief, placing a hand on her leg. "I'm glad your okay…" He said quietly, looking up at her with a happy expression. "Lay low for a bit. I don't want you to get caught." Ivan nodded and kicked Zeus into a walk, moving to the side of the ship. Cloud began to walk to where Ivan directed him, glancing around at the SOLDIERS and sailors that were walking past him casually.

"Barrett?" Cloud asked, seeing an oddly huge man in a sailor outfit crouching beside the steering area of the ship. Another SOLDIER was with him, whom Cloud immediately picked out as Regret due to her long hair that was falling out from beneath her helmet. "Yo Spikey, come ere'." Barrett waved Cloud over who crawled to where the two were hiding. "Rufus is inside. Be quiet, we're trying to listen in." Regret told Cloud, holding a finger to her own lips.

"Look at them in there. They're so close and we can't do a thin to em'." Barrett said clenching and unclenching his fists repeatedly. Regret placed a hand on Barrett's back comfortingly. "Because of him my old AVALANCHE team…Biggs…Wedge…Jessie…they…that's it! I'm settling this right here right now." Barrett hollered quietly, raising his gun arm. Suddenly and alarm sounded and the three stiffened, frightened that they had been caught.

EMERGENCY ALERT! Reports of a suspicious character found! Those not on detail, search the ship. Report when found. I repeat! Reports of a suspicious character found! Those not on detail, search the ship. Report when found.

"Suspicious character?" Regret questioned, aware that the announcement was not for them.

"Do they mean Ivan and the others? Yo! What if they're in danger?" Barrett stood and ran off in the direction of the rest of AVALANCHE.

"Let's go." Cloud said, pulling Regret up and following Barrett closely.

"Is everyone alright?" Aerith asked as AVALANCHE gathered in a group on the deck.

"Hang on…everyone's here…" Tifa trailed off, eyeing everyone in the group.

"Obviously." Regret shot out, rolling her eyes at Tifa's statement.

"Hey wait. Ya don't think that suspicious character is…" Barrett trailed off, taking in the expectant glances of everyone else.

"Sephiroth!" Ivan finished for him. Cloud narrowed his eyes. "Makes sense…"

"We have to go. But we can't all go at once. It'll be too dangerous." Aerith said.

"Right. So who is going to go?" Red said, glancing at everyone in the group. Yuffie immediately stepped forward and gagged into her hand. "Not me…urghh…I don't even like Sephiroth anyway." She leaned forward and took in a deep breath. "I'm gonna go over there…" She said, pointing to the side of the deck where she quickly ran to, heaving heavily.

Zeus backed up a bit and nudged Ivan's legs with his wings. "I don't think Zeus wants me to go…" She said, her ears and tail drooping. Red walked over to Zeus and Ivan and sat with them, his tail sweeping lowly. "I shall stay with Ivan then."

"Count me out. Sephiroth is kind of scary." Tifa said, waving her hands in front of her. Regret scoffed and looked at Aerith, Barrett and Cloud.

"Looks like it's us four." She said.

"Don't die!" Ivan called out, a worried smile on her face. Aerith sent a reassuring smile towards Ivan, which seemed to calm her. Yet Ivan couldn't shake the weird feeling in her head that a dangerous battle was brewing.

"Look." Aerith gasped and pointed to the cargo room door. It was smeared with dripping blood and SOLDIERS lay around it, their bodies lifeless.

"Yo. It stinks…" Barrett said, holding his nose and waving his gun arm to clear the air.

"Suck it up." Regret said, pulling out her swords. "Be prepared. I sense an evil aura emanating from that room." She said, narrowing her eyes. Cloud equipped his Buster Sword and Aerith pulled out her staff. Barrett pushed open the unlocked door with ease and led the group inside, glancing around cautiously as he did so.

The room was filled with lifeless corpses of ShinRa employees, SOLDIERS and sailors. An eerie mist filled the air and a silhouette of a man appeared before Barrett, Aerith, Cloud and Regret.

"After a long sleep…the time…the time has come…" A deep and malevolent voice filled the air, sending chills down Regret's spine. She knew that voice all too well. The mist began to dissipate and out of the silhouette emerged a man clad in a black cloak with long, silver hair. His eyes were filled with malicious intent, and his mouth was upturned in a smirk, as if he was amused.

"SEPHIROTH!" Cloud yelled, raising his sword slightly. Sephiroth gazed blankly at Cloud, unmoving.

"Who are you?" He asked, his tone of voice remaining deep and demonic. Cloud grunted and frowned.

"You don't remember me?" He yelled. "I'm Cloud!"

"Cloud…" He said as if he were reminiscing. His eyes scanned over the blonde man then travelled to Regret, who was standing there with a softened expression.

"Sephiroth…" She whispered, loosening her grip on her swords. He raised and eyebrow and an amused chuckle escaped his lips.

"Regret my dear…" He spoke, taking a miniscule step forward. "Why are you so tense?" He drawled out his words, spreading out his arms expecting her to run to him. She let out a deep breath and stepped backwards, bringing her swords out in front of her.

"No. Don't say my name…" She whispered harshly, sending a glare in his direction.

Sephiroth chuckled viciously and took another step forward, as if to test her. Regret shook her head and looked down to avoid his piercing gaze.

"I see…" He mumbled, the smirk not leaving his face for a single second. "It seems as if Regret doesn't like me anymore…" He said, spitefully, yet still amused.

"Ya think?" Barrett said, aiming his gun at Sephiroth.

"By the way…how is dear, little Ivan?" Cloud reacted immediately and dashed forward, but Sephiroth simply held up his hand and stopped Cloud in his tracks. Cloud struggled against the dark force that was holding him back, his eyes full of rage.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW IVAN?" Cloud shouted, trying to push himself forward.

"Oh, touchy. I see this Ivan means a lot to you." He smiled darkly. "Now I know how to break you…"

"YOU LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS!" Regret yelled, throwing a sword at Sephiroth. He took a step to the side, not even fazed by the attack.

"My dear Regret. I always admired your tenacity…" He said, smiling at her. However it wasn't a genuine smile. It was a smile filled with torment and malevolent spirit. He took a step back and closed his eyes.

"The time is now…"

Sephiroth slowly began to fade and in his place, a fiend began to appear. It began to morph and grow in size. It's tentacles stuck to the sides of the walls, slowly creeping their way to the group.

"CLOUD!" Aerith yelled, grabbing Cloud's attention. He quickly jumped out of the path of a tentacle that struck the area that he was previously standing.

"No…" He whispered, looking around at the great beast that was growing larger by the second. "This isn't just a fiend…" The beast let out and ear-piercing screech. "This is Jenova…"

"Jenova?" Barrett asked, shooting at a tentacle that was approaching him.

"It's a part of Jenova. Like the spawn of Jenova, this isn't the only one." He yelled out, attacking tentacles that were surrounding him.

"Aw Shit…Sephiroth has more in his arsenal?" Barrett groaned, shooting randomly at the tentacles that were slowly creeping up the walls.

Regret jumped forward and slashed at a tentacle that was approaching Aerith. Another tentacle shot just as quickly as the other had disappeared.

"Cloud! Attacking the tentacles isn't doing anything! We have to attack the source. Attack its core!" Regret yelled, pointing her sword to where the tentacles were sprouting.

"I can't get close!" Cloud yelled, a tentacle smashing against his stomach sending him flying backwards. Aerith glanced around at everyone who was occupied with defending his or her own lives. She took in a deep breath and pushed herself forward, making a mad dash towards Jenova's core. Aerith skidded to a stop and let out her breath. She hastily raised her staff and let an insane amount of fiery power develop at the tip. "Burn…" She whispered, shooting the fire towards Jenova's core. The flames exploded the second it came into contact with Jenova, engulfing its entire being with heat. The tentacles retracted to the core and Jenova began to wither and crumble away to nothing. Not even ash was left behind. Cloud ran up to Aerith and threw his arms around her, pulling her into his chest.

"Don't ever do that again. You scared us all…" He mumbled, slowly pulling away from the embrace. Aerith nodded, a serious expression taking over her delicate features.

"What did he mean by the time is now?" She asked, placing a hand on her chin in thought.

"Yo Spikey!" Barrett boomed, slapping Cloud on the back. "None of this don't make no sense. Ya mind explaining what ya know?" Cloud sighed and turned to Regret, who nodded in approval.

"I'll try, but don't interrupt me while I'm explaining." He said, sheathing his sword. "Sephiroth went off searching for the Promised Land so he could become ruler of the planet. That was five years ago. Then Sephiroth came and killed President ShinRa, and then he came just now and killed workers of ShinRa, who are in search of the Promised Land. I remember Sephiroth saying he wants to go to the Promised Land with his mother, Jenova…" Barrett hummed in response and folded his arms, his face showing confusion.

**ATTENTION. We will be docking in Costa Del Sol in 5 minutes. Prepare for docking.**

"Shit! We better go hide." Barrett said, ushering everyone out of the Cargo hold, not taking a second glance at the place.

"Sephiroth is alive…" Regret whispered to herself, rubbing her exposed arms. "He's not how I remember him." She let one tear fall down her cheek, quickly wiping it away before anybody saw. "He's not the man that I once loved…"


	10. Chapter 10

_**Welcome to Costa del Sol**_

AVALANCHE regrouped beside the ship where the shadow of the great metal structure shielded them from the suns fierce rays. Barrett fanned his face with his hand, allowing air to cool down his sweat developing skin. "Damn! Sure is hot here!" He swiped his hand across his forehead, wiping away the build up of moisture. "I feel better now that I don't have ta' wear that sailor suit though." Barrett turned to the rest of AVALANCHE, a stern look passing his dehydrated face. "Yo! Listen up!" He hollered, beckoning the group to move closer. "Ya'll be sure to mingle like regular folks here!"

"Hang on." Cloud interrupted, holding his hand to hush Barrett. "Keep your mind on Sephiroth. Remember, this isn't a vacation. We're after Sephiroth. So don't get distracted." Yuffie rolled her eyes at Cloud's statement, letting out a dry laugh at his serious tone. "Ya just suck the fun outta everything, don't ya Chocobo head?" Cloud simply ignored Yuffie and preceded ahead, entering the hot and sun burnt village of Costa del Sol. The rest began to follow suite, but Regret stopped short, her hearing picking up two sets of pants. It sounded as if someone had run a mile. Regret spun around, her hands hovering over her swords in caution.

"Um…" She dropped her hands to her sides and raised an eyebrow at the source of the panting. Ivan and Red lay flat on the ground, both looking flustered and out of breathe. Zeus was nudging Ivan's side, his eyes glancing at Regret with a questionable gaze. Blaise was opposite Zeus, pecking at Red's paws inconspicuously.

"What's…. wrong?" Regret asked. She was confused as to why the two furry-eared creatures looked as if they were dying.

"It's SO hot…" Ivan mumbled, laughing awkwardly from her position on the ground.

"The heat is drying my nose…." Red mumbled from beside the red head, using his tail to swipe at the flies that were gathering around his head. Regret let out a chuckle and shook her head, coming closer to the two. Ivan groaned and lifted her head to glare at Regret.

"Your so mean. This isn't funny!" She yelled lazily, her voice cracking due to a lack of water. Regret held back a laugh that was trying to escape, but failed miserably.

"She's not even helping us!" Ivan wailed. Her ears were reeled backwards and her tail drooped in a depressed manner. "She's just standing there…amused by us suffering." Red licked his nose and closed his eyes, his panting getting louder as he tried to lower his body temperature.

"At least she is laughing…It's not everyday that you see Regret genuinely happy…" Upon hearing this, Regret immediately stopped laughing and regained her composure. She coughed uncomfortably and brushed off imaginary dust off of her shoulders.

"Zeus! Blaise!" Regret called, bringing her fingers to her lips and releasing a high-pitched whistle. The large black Chocobo and the regular sized red Chocobo trotted over casually. Regret leaned down and lifted Ivan effortlessly, hauling her tiny body over Zeus' back. She then proceeded to lift Red and hauled his tired body onto Blaise's back.

"You messed up my mane…" Red said, shaking his head in every direction in an attempt to regain the shape of his mane.

"Yeah, mine too!" Ivan called out, imitating Red's mane flipping.

Regret grabbed the reins of the two Chocobo's and led them into the village, the smallest smile gracing her lips as she did so.

Meanwhile

Rufus adjusted his black tie and straightened his flawless white suit as he waltzed off of the ship, Hediegger stumbling closely behind.

"I heard Sephiroth was aboard." Rufus stated, seemingly unfazed by the extreme heat of Costa del Sol. Hediegger swallowed the phlegm that was developing in his mouth nervously.

"Yes…" He said, wiping his forehead on his green jacket sleeve.

"It seems Cloud an the others were aboard the ship as well." Hediegger cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Yes…" He wiped his forehead again, not due to the heat, but more so his nervousness. Rufus narrowed his and folded his arms, turning to face Hediegger with a disappointed look on his porcelain face.

"They all slipped through…you messed this up, Hediegger." An intimidating air floated around Rufus, sending Hediegger into a state of panic.

"I'm ashamed of myself." He said, attempting to suck up to his boss. Rufus was about to reply, but was cut off by a sailor informing him of their departure.

"Sir, the helicopter is ready." Rufus nodded and returned his attention to Hediegger, sending him a stern look.

"Do something about it. I'll be expecting the results." With that said, Rufus ShinRa boarded the helicopter, slamming the door in Hediegger's face. The short and stubby man was momentarily distracted by the loud blades of the helicopter chopping through the wind, but quickly snapped out of it, looking down at his feet worriedly.

"Aw shit…" he mumbled.

-

Ivan sat outside of the Costa del Sol inn, leaning her lithe body against Red's furry one. Zeus was nestled beside the two, his head hidden beneath his wings. Ivan's legs were outstretched before her and her eyes were closed, her ears perked fully at the soft music emanating from the beachside bar. Red's tail gently tapped her side every few seconds as he swept it from side to side while Ivan's was tucked away behind her. She wasn't too familiar with her tail just yet.

"I'm getting used to the heat…" She muttered lazily, contently sighing at the warmth that overtook her entire being.  
"Its nice." Red stated, his tail hitting her again.

"Where'd Regret run off to?" Ivan asked. Her ear twitched as a fly landed on it.

"I believe she is inside the inn. She told me she wanted to be alone." His tail hit her side again.

"Red? I think my injuries are getting better. I can move around properly without the help of Zeus." As she said this, Zeus' head picked up. He pecked her shoulder and let out a low wark.  
"Ouch, ya big bird brain!" Ivan shouted, poking Zeus' forehead with her index finger. "Zeus, just cause I'm okay doesn't mean I'll get rid of you. You're stuck with me forever." In response, he shoved his head up proudly and wiggled his wings. Ivan let out a chuckle and situated herself back into her previous comfortable position.

"Red? Do you ever think I'll ever remember-"

"HEY GUYS!" Tifa, who was running towards them, cut her sentence short. Aerith trailed closely behind, followed by Cloud.

"You'll never guess who we saw at the beach!" She shouted, jutting her thumb behind her.

"Someone tipped us off about Sephiroth." Aerith said, peeking at Red, Ivan and Zeus from behind Tifa. "They said he was headed west." Tifa shot Aerith a look, and then returned her gaze to the three. Ivan stood up, a grin adorning her cute face.

"I'll go tell Regret, Barrett and Yuffie. They'll be glad to know we finally know where to head next." She quickly bounded off and into the inn, disappearing from sight. Tifa folded her arms and turned to Aerith, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Why didn't you tell them that it was Hojo?" Red immediately stood up, the fur on his neck standing on end.

"Hojo tipped you off? He's here?" Cloud stepped forward, gently pushing Tifa to the side. He ran a hand through his blonde hair and sighed.

"Yeah. We can't tell Ivan, Regret or Barrett. Regret and Barrett are rash and very unforgiving. We need all the information about Sephiroth that we can get. It just so happened that Hojo is the one to give it to us. If they found out he was here, those two would rush into battle without thinking of the consequences."

"And Ivan?" Red asked. Zeus stood up at the sound of her name.

"I don't want her to have to see him ever again." Cloud stated harshly, folding his arms stubbornly.

"So, west is it?" Barrett boomed, waltzing out of a random shop with Ivan sitting on his unusually broad shoulders. At the same time, Regret came out of the inn and Yuffie appeared out of nowhere, generally surprising everyone.

"Yeah. Everyone, make sure your well rested. Tomorrow's journey is going to be long and tiring." Cloud informed the group, glancing at everyone's faces. Ivan climbed down from Barrett's shoulders and skipped over to Cloud, smiling hugely. He returned the gesture with a smaller smile.

"Well, you're looking better." Cloud said, ruffling Ivan's already messy tresses. He then let his arm drop from her head to rest on her shoulders. Ivan giggled and her ears perked up happily. "Yeah. My injuries are healing."

"Ya just wastefully cheerful…" Barrett said, patting her back. She just smiled innocently from Cloud's embrace.

"What's wrong with being cheerf-"

"HEY YOU!" A loud voice cut Yuffie's sentence short, sending shock through everyone's body. An elderly man hobbled over to Yuffie, waving his walking stick in the air menacingly.

"YOU STOLE ALL MY MATERIA." Yuffie laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of her head. "Ehehe…n…no I didn't…" She smiled nervously, slowly taking a few steps backwards, holding her hands up in defence. Regret smirked and stuck out her leg, causing Yuffie to collide with it and fall backwards. The old man rubbed his hands together, an evil glint sparkling from behind his glasses.  
"Revenge…" He muttered darkly, hobbling forward.

Everyone else just stood back, highly amused, with no intention of helping her.


	11. Chapter 11

"Please tell me we aren't crossing that…" Ivan mumbled. Her hands trembled as she held Zeus' reins with a death grip. Standing in front of AVALANCHE was a long and rickety, wooden bridge. It's obvious weakness was well pronounced as it swayed dangerously from side to side in the wind. The ropes that held the rotten wood were frayed and looked as if they were about to snap.

"I don't see any other way across." Tifa said, leaning forward to view the deep ravine that prevented the group from moving any further. The rocky chasm stood great and wide. It was a deep rift on Mt Corel, with the only connection across being a near broken, wooden bridge.  
"It IS the only way." Regret stated, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "Unless you feel like jumping over and obviously falling to your death, feel free to. I'm not stopping you." Regret said, pushing Tifa out of the way.

"Fighting won't solve anything you know…" Aerith said, placing a hand on Regret's shoulder.

"I will go first." Red said, pushing past the women gently. He turned his head to glance behind him, his headdress charms jingling in the process. He sent a small smile towards Ivan, then turned back to the bridge. Placing a small paw forward, Red began to make his way across the bridge slowly, well aware and cautious of where he placed each paw. Each step earned a long and loud creak from the wood.

"He's almost there!" Ivan's eyes were wide with anticipation as she watched him reach the end of the bridge safely. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the rest, sinking back onto Zeus' back.

"Who's next?" She asked, afraid of the oncoming answer.

"Why don't you go?" Regret smirked, ignoring Cloud's angry glares. Ivan let her head fall forward causing her hair to shield her sullen face from the group.

"O…okay." She said, her voice cracking as she spoke.

"Wait!" Cloud ran up beside Ivan, his voice full of concern. "I'm going with you." He grunted and pulled himself up onto Zeus' back, sitting comfortably behind Ivan. He reached forward and grabbed the reins from Ivan's hands, taking control of Zeus.

"Hey." Cloud and Ivan both turned to look behind them, eyebrows raised with similar facial expressions. At that exact moment, they could have actually looked like blood siblings. Yuffie ran forward and laughed, sending the two awkward glances.

"Just…be careful." She began to walk backwards, waving her hand dismissively. Ivan merely waved, her fear becoming her only emotion.

"An' what was that about?" Barrett asked, glancing sideways at the small ninja. She simply shrugged.

"I don't know. Ivan just…she worries me. I feel…weirdly protective of her. Like she's my little sister or something."

"I know what you mean." Aerith stepped forward, her eyes settled intensely on the back of Ivan's head.

"I feel a connection to her. What do you think Regret?" The pink flower girl turned to look at Regret, who was staring at Cloud and Ivan with interest.

"I guess she just has the effect on everyone. She brings a sort of warmth to everyone. She's always smiling. Kind of like you Aerith, she's just…more annoying." Regret let her arm fall around Aerith's shoulder in a sideways hug.

"Should I be offended?" Aerith whispered as she leaned towards Barrett, who in turn leaned towards her. "Dunno. Should I be scared? I swear, that's the longest sentence I've ever heard Regret say." Regret scoffed, and smacked Barrett with her free hand.

"You do know I can hear you…"

"You ready to cross?" Cloud asked, leaning his on Ivan's shoulder carefully. She nodded and kicked Zeus into a sprint. He warked loudly and began to run forward. As they neared the bridge, Zeus spread his large black wings outwards and launched himself off of the cliff, warking happily.

"AAHHH! NO ZEUS!" Ivan screamed, squirming around in Cloud's arms. She began to breath heavily and clenched her eyes tightly shut, her hands gripping onto Clouds forearms with all the energy she could muster. With a thud, Zeus landed on the other side, shaking his feathers in content.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Barrett yelled opposite the bridge, shaking his hands in the air wildly.

"Oh right…I forgot. Black Chocobo's can fly…" Ivan stated, taking in long and deep breaths to calm herself.

"How do you forget something like that?" Regret asked, appearing behind Ivan soundlessly.

"WHAT- AAAH!" In shock, Ivan fell back off of Zeus and onto the ground, her eyes wide with fear. She furrowed her eyebrows and planting her hands firmly on the ground below her, pushing herself upwards into a sitting position.

"HOW DID YOU GET THERE?" She demanded, pointing at the ground Regret was standing on.

"I walked?" Ivan glanced back over to where Barrett, Yuffie, Tifa and Aerith were, opposite the bridge.

"DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!" She screamed, swiping her tail at Regret's leg angrily.

"Do what? Walk?"

"No! Argh, SHUTUP!"

"Don't shutup?" Regret smirked and let out a chuckle at Ivan's frustration.

"No! Just…just…hey…" Ivan's attention dropped and her eyes began to travel behind Regret, her eyes wide with curiosity. She pointed her index finger in the direction she was staring and hummed in interest.

"There's a town here…" Sure enough, Ivan was right. Regret spun on her heel, only to see a variety of tents and poorly built 'houses' littering the barren land. Indeed, there was a town here.

Barrett had taken the lead and was walking ahead of the group. Although he showed initiative and held a brave face, his posture showed otherwise. Barrett hunched over slightly and walked with his head low, his hands lost in the pockets of his pants. Regret noticed his sudden change in mood and eyed him suspiciously. It was like he had been to this rubble cluttered town before. AVALANCHE remained quiet as they ventured closer to the town, as if Barrett's sudden decline in cussing and booming words had taken a large toll on them.

"Does anybody know where we are?" Tifa asked, her voice snapping everybody out of their reverie. Barrett grunted and stopped walking, folding his arms with a scowl on his face.

"We just travelled across Mount Corel and now…we in' the village of Corel." Barrett shifted his weight to his other foot and sighed. "This is where I used ta' live."

"You! You're…Hey! He's back!" A citizen of Corel shouted out towards Barrett and fellow townspeople, waving everyone over with quick hand movements.

"Wait here." He said, quickly glancing over his shoulder at AVALANCHE. He shuffled over to the citizen that had called him out and extended his hand in greeting only to receive a punch in the face. The citizen withdrew his fist and rubbed it, a disgusted look painted across his features.

"Well, lookey' here. Never thought I'd see your face again. Those people over there…" The citizen said, pointing over Barrett's shoulder. "They with you? Well, I feel sorry for em'! They're hangin' around a walking death sentence like you, Barrett." Another citizen of Corel came up and stood next to the other, a snide smirk on his face.

"You got a lot of balls comin' back here. Look at this place! It's all your fault North Corel turned into a garbage heap."

"Sorry…" Barrett grumbled. The word seemed to lack meaning coming from his mouth.

"You ain't even worth the effort. I'm not gonna waste my time talking to a techno-freak like you." With that said, the two citizens walked off, their heads held high. Ivan slowly walked forward and placed a hand on Barrett's back comfortingly, her eyebrows raised with worry.

"Barrett…" She began, her furry, red, dog-like ears retracting to lay flat against her head.

"No. Don't say anything. It's fine…I'm fine." Barrett shrugged Ivan's hand off of his shoulder and walked away, out of sight.

"What was that about?" Regret questioned, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

"WHOA! What is that thing?" Yuffie shouted, pointing at a large train-like contraption that was hanging by long metal wires.

"That's our transport, The Ropeway Liner." Regret said. "This place is called the Ropeway Station. It's the only way to get to the Gold Saucer…which is an amusement park." Yuffie's eyes brightened and she squealed, jumping up and down in excitement.

"We're going to an amusement park?" She grinned and ran forward, disappearing into the Ropeway Liner. Regret rolled her eyes than turned to Barrett.

"What happened back there?" She asked.

Barrett let out a long and deep sigh and coughed uncomfortably.

"My hometown got buried here four years ago. It's all my fault…" He looked down, finding sudden interest on the concrete ground beneath him. "ShinRa wanted to replace our coal energy with Mako energy. It was their revolution. My best friend Dyne…he was completely against it. He would rather stick to the traditional ways than use ShinRa technology. It didn't matter though, ShinRa built the Mako Reactor in our village anyway. They also burnt our village."  
"ShinRa burnt it down?" Ivan asked, shocked and appalled.

"ShinRa always seems to be involved in everything bad…" Aerith said, looking away. Barrett nodded and continued. "An explosion at the reactor caused the fire. ShinRa blamed the accident on the people. They said it was the doings of a rebel faction. I can't forgive myself for what I did then…I went along with the building of the reactor."

"It's not your fault. Everybody used to believe ShinRa's lies." Regret stated.

"That's why I get so pissed off! Not only did they take advantage of me…I lost my wife, Myrna and my best friend Dyne too…"

"Hey everyone! If you want to go to the Gold Saucer, then hurry and get on the Ropeway Liner!" The man behind the booth cut in and waved the group over to the Liner.

"We'd better get on…" Cloud said, ushering everyone aboard.

"Wow…" Ivan exclaimed, her eyes were wide as she stared out the window of the Ropeway Liner in absolute amazement.

"She's never seen anything like this before." Red whispered to Cloud. Cloud chuckled at Ivan's childish wonderment. "She's so cute."

Fireworks lit up the night sky and the lights illuminated the actual building, which lived true to it's name. The Gold Saucer was truly a Gold Saucer. It was a wide and large circular shape, and the fireworks set the gold colouring ablaze. A roller coaster railway wound around the huge building, twisting in all directions and balloons littered the air in all sizes, colours and shapes. Ivan's ears perked up as she heard faint, lively music emitting from inside.

"Let's go play some games! C'mon Barrett, you play too! Cheer up!" Yuffie shouted, punching the air enthusiastically.

"I ain't in no cheery mood. Just leave me alone." Barrett folded his arms stubbornly and huffed. Regret shot Yuffie a quick glare. She knew better than to provoke Barrett at such a time.

"Fine! Well, I'm gonna play games." Yuffie stuck her tongue out at Barrett, and 'humphed' triumphantly.

"So PLAY! Have fun stuffing around even though Sephiroth is out there killing people as we speak!" Barrett said snidely. He grunted then pushed the door to the Ropeway Liner open and ran out.

"Poor Barrett…" Ivan murmured, her eyes filled with worry as she watched Barrett's retreating figure with concern. Yuffie slapped Ivan lightly on the back and laughed.

"He'll be fine. Now! Let's play!" And before you could say Sephiroth, Yuffie was gone in a flash.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author Note: I'm going to change the style of writing for the remainder of the story. The majority of it will be written in First Person, in either Regret or Ivan's Point of View. Sometimes it will be written in another person's perspective, but mainly Regret and Ivan. I've decided that I want to give more insight into my two main characters, that's my reasoning. Anyway…read on!**

Regret

I combed my gloved fingers through my long hair as I leant against the wall of the Central Area in the Gold Saucer. Barrett was conversing heatedly with Cloud and Yuffie was pulling at Tifa's arm, persuading her to go to the Arcade. I sighed in annoyance and averted my gaze towards Aerith, who had her eyes cast downwards. She had a sullen look on her face. She looked worried.

"What's up?" I caught her attention and she looked up, quickly covering up her emotions with a smile.

"Nothing." She replied quickly. This girl couldn't fool me. Back in SOLDIER, I had learnt to look past a person's lies and see the truth for what it really was. So, I could tell she was lying.

"There's no need to hide anything from me. Whatever it is…" I felt the need to assure her. Trust. Trust was something this group lacked. Even Ivan hid things from Red. I guess we're just all scared of the consequences of revealing our deepest, darkest secrets. We don't know who's listening, and who could use those very secrets against us.

"It's just…I've never been in a place like this before. It's exciting!" She said, clasping her hands together and sucking in a sharp breath. Was this girl serious? I breathed a sigh of relief and lightly chuckled.

"Okay then." I pushed myself off of the wall and pushed her slightly. "Go on. Go. Have some fun." Aerith gasped and her hands tightened around each other.

"Really?" She reminded me of a child sometimes. She was so innocent.

"Yes. Now go."

She squealed and turned to leave, but stopped quickly and threw her arms around my neck in a warm hug. "Thank you." She whispered, before spinning and running towards Yuffie and Tifa who were about to leave.

"Well that was nice of you." A voice sounded behind me. I tilted my head a bit. In the corner of my left eye was a mass of red. Ivan slowly came into my vision with a wide smile on her face.

"Barrett ran of somewhere. He kinda got angry at everyone for wanting to rest at the Gold Saucer…" She mumbled, pulling at the hem of her jacket anxiously.

"Cloud, Red, Zeus and I are going to head over to Wonder Square. You coming?" I nodded, eyeing the girl at her suspicious behaviour.

"Awesome. C'mon, they're already leaving!" She piped up enthusiastically, wrapping her arm around mine with a tight hold.

"Why are you so happy?" Ivan grinned up at me and her tail swished in intricate patterns behind her. Zeus warked behind Ivan. He seemed happy too.

"We're at the Gold Saucer…I've never seen such a wonderful place before. It's so cool here!" She exclaimed, pulling at my arm as she walked towards Wonder Square, her eyes never leaving mine. Or at least I thought they were focused on mine. Ivan always seemed to have a dreamy look in her eyes so it was hard to tell whether she was focused on you, or her mind was elsewhere. It only added more mystery to the already complex girl. Although I had to admit, I was becoming attached to her, and I don't know why. It made me feel…uneasy.

"Hey Cloud!" Ivan's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I brought my attention back to Ivan and the others.

"Who's that?" She asked, pointing to a large white Moogle which had a small black cat standing on it's head. The creature was holding Cloud's palm in it's huge fist.

"Cait Sith's the name." Ivan withdrew her arm from mine and bounded forward, patting the cat on the head cutely.

"Hi Cait Sith! Oh, you're so adorable!" She cooed, pulling the cat off of the Moogle and into a hug.

"Oh…you're a sweet girl." He said in a thick Irish accent. She giggled and placed the cat back.

"Hey you! What're you lookin' so down for? How bout' I read your future?" He said, the Moogle's large arm prodding Regret's arm repeatedly.

"Don't make me hurt you…" I glared at the creature. Something about this wasn't right. I couldn't bring myself to trust Cait Sith, as friendly as he appeared to be.

"You can read the future?" Ivan asked excitedly, moving closer to Cait Sith in excitement. I moved closer to her in caution, wary of Cait Sith's movements.

"You kidding? I can find missing things, missing people, anything!" Ivan grabbed the Moogle's arm and shook it, grabbing Cait Sith's attention.

"Can you read my future?" She asked, a huge grin on her cute face. I mentally laughed. She could be such a child sometimes.

"Sure thing sweetie pie." He shuffled about, then pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Ivan. She took it politely and unfurled it, her pale blue eyes examining the writing. Zeus leaned over Ivan's shoulder, he looked as if he was reading the paper as well.

"Those closest to you will be the end of you, but the one you love will save you…what?" I narrowed my eyes. What kind of prediction was that?

"Oh dear. That is quite morbid. I think I shall predict you next." Cait Sith turned towards Cloud and shuffled about, then handed him a piece of paper much like he did with Ivan. Ivan frowned and scrunched up her fortune, shoving it into her pocket while no-one was watching. But, I saw. Cloud opened his fortune and raised an eyebrow.

"What you pursue will be yours, but you will lose something dear." Cait Sith hummed in curiosity and snatched the paper from Cloud's hands.

"I don't know if it's good OR bad. This is the first time I've gotten predictions like these. Well then…shall we?"

"Excuse me?" Red said, confused at what Cait Sith was trying to do. He growled lowly and glanced at me. I could tell Red didn't fully trust Cait Sith, like me.

"As a fortune teller, I can't help but think about this. If I don't see what it leads to, I won't be able to relax. That's why I'm going with you!"

"You can't just-" Cloud began, but Cait Sith smacked him softly on the head.

"I'm coming with you no matter what you say!"

"This is so cool!" Ivan said, grabbing Cait Sith from the Moogle and hugging him gently.

"I think I'm starting to like you already." The cat said, nuzzling her cheek lovingly. I coughed uncomfortably at Ivan's closeness to the cat and turned to Cloud, who merely shrugged. Red eyed Cait Sith once more, then turned and began to walk toward Battle Square. I guess that for now I would have to grin and bear having Cait Sith with us, despite my troubled feelings towards him. Scratch that, I wouldn't grin, I'd just bear it.

"So, we're headed to the Battle Square?" Cait Sith asked from the top of the Moogle's head.

"Yeah." Cloud said, leading the group forward through a large door.

"What's the Battle Square?" Ivan asked, sitting comfortably on Zeus back, her arms draped around his feathery neck.

"The Battle Square is where fighters of all kinds gather to duke it out for a huge cash prize." I informed her, flexing my fingers to show that I had the makings to be on of those warriors. Red smirked at my actions and I returned the gesture, winking at him as I did so.

"So how much do you – what the?" Ivan stopped Zeus from walking and stared forward, her eyes wide at what she had them planted on.

A man lay before the stairs that led towards the Battle Square, dull and lifeless. Blood had leaked from his body, which were covered in what appeared to be bullet holes. Instant vigilance came over me and I withdrew my swords, glancing around to survey the area.

"Cloud…" I said, shooting him an expressionless look. He nodded and withdrew his Buster Sword and ran up the stairs towards the Battle Square.

"Let's go." I said, signalling for the others to follow.

Lifeless and bloodied bodies scattered Battle Square, and blood was splattered across the walls. Cloud slowly walked forward, carefully manoeuvring his way around the bodies in an attempt not to step on them.

"Could Sephiroth have done this?" Cloud asked himself as he examined the bodies from afar.

"Sephiroth would never use a gun." I stated, remembering the bullet holes that coated that man at the entrance. It was true. Sephiroth would never use a gun. His skill was so advanced that he didn't need technology to aid his brute strength and talent. That was something I had always known. Sephiroth had always been powerful, even before he…lost his mind. It was something I once admired him for. Now, it's something that I fear. Something that we all fear.

Movement. I sensed movement behind the reception desk. I ventured over, swords wielded and at the ready. I never dropped my guard, not ever. Another thing I had learnt from my days in SOLDIER. A wounded employee pulled himself up from the desk and groaned in pain, holding his stomach.

"Who did this?" Cloud demanded with a lack of sympathy for the man's wounds.

"A man…with…a gun…on his…arm…" The man closed his eyes and fell backwards, hitting the wall with a thud. He was dead.

"A man with a gun on his arm? Barrett?" Ivan asked, shock filling her voice as realization dawned upon her.

"Hold it right there!" A voice boomed through Battle Square. Everyone's attention turned toward the entrance where Dio, the owner of Gold Saucer stood. There were approximately twenty Security Corps behind him, armed and ready to fire.

"Did you do this?" Dio shouted, his voice filled with rage as he clenched his fists, his eyes bulging.

"No! It wasn't us!" Cloud shouted, quickly sheathing his sword. I followed suite and sheathed my swords, but kept my hands hovering above for cautionary purposes. I had a feeling our words wouldn't get through to Dio.

"Than who else did?" Dio inquired, raising an eyebrow I suspicion.

"I suggest we run…" Cait Sith whispered. "It's going to get ugly." Everyone began to scatter but Security Corps emerged from every exit. We were trapped.

"We had nothing to do with this." I shouted. The Security Corps advanced on us, the weapons raised, however I did not withdraw my swords. We were truly innocent, we didn't want evidence proving that we were guilty. One of the Security Corps grabbed my wrists roughly and twisted them behind my back, slapping handcuffs onto them with ease.

"Ah!" I hear Ivan scream and watched as one guard pulled her off of Zeus, causing her to hit the floor, hard. She cried out in pain and I cringed. I felt useless. Cloud began to struggle in an attempt to help Ivan, but the guard held him back with a vice-like grip. Red growled and snapped lightly at the foot of one of the guards only to receive a kick in the face.

"What are you gonna do with us?" Ivan asked in a meek voice. Tears fell freely down her cheeks and blood seeped out of her mouth. The guard had worsened her internal injuries, which had just begun to heal. I had never felt more ineffective as I watched Ivan helplessly, as she coughed up more blood.

"You're all going to pay for you crimes…down below."


	13. Chapter 13

**It's been a long wait, but, the next chapter is here! Please review if you read the stories. If you don't, Sephiroth will cry and Jenova will smite you.  
Peace, Love and Moogles - Gabby  
DISCLAIMER: I don't own FF7, I only own Regret and Ivan. If I did own FF7, there would be more Cid moments :)**

Now, SIT YOUR ASS DOWN AND READ THE GODDAMNED STORY!  


* * *

**Cloud**

Sand. Everywhere I turned, there was sand.

"Where are we?" I groaned, rubbing the entirety of my aching back. The guards of the Gold Saucer were less than kind, roughly handling us as we were transported to wherever we were.

"We're at Corel Prison. The desert prison." Cait Sith approached me, his large, white body giving me temporary shade from the scorching sun.

"This is the Gold Saucer's prison?"

"Yeah. They used this rundown town as a natural prison. This area is surrounded entirely by quicksand. I heard that once you get in, you never get out." Cait Sith looked away, eyeing the vast plains of sand that surrounded the run down town. This area was barely liveable.

"Cloud!" I turned to see Regret walking towards me, with Zeus carrying Ivan on his back. Trailing behind were Aerith, Yuffie, Red and Tifa.

"You were caught too?" I asked, casting a quick glance toward Aerith and Tifa who looked quiet bruised and beaten.

"Dio ordered us to be thrown in here too. He knew who we were." I let out an exasperated sigh and folded my arms.

"How's Ivan?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at Regret who was clutching Zeus' reigns tightly.

"Why don't you ask her?" Regret stated simply, nodding her head toward the girl. Ivan was leaning against Zeus' neck wearily, her red hair falling across her face, hiding her bruises. Her chest heaved up and down, as she took long, deep breaths.

"I'm okay." She whispered, snuggling into Zeus' feathers. I reached my hand forward and gripped her chin gently, forcing her to look at me.

"Are you sure?" I asked with suspicion, my eyes catching the blood that dripped from her mouth. Ivan's internal wounds had be worsened due to the guards lack of care for the injured girl. She was trying to hide her pain, but I could tell she was hurting. I bet we could all tell.

"Barrett?" She whispered, lifting her head slightly, her eyes brightening as she did so. "Barrett! You're okay!" She shouted, waving her arm weakly. I tilted my head, and sure enough, Barrett was standing where Ivan was looking.  
"Barrett, did you really do it?" Regret asked, venturing toward the dark skinned man.

"Just leave me alone. This is something I gotta handle mi'self." He began to mumble incoherently to himself and ran off, disappearing from our line of vision.

"Let's go." Regret flipped her hair over her shoulder and began to travel in the same direction as Barrett.

"We're not following that man with a gun-arm, are we?" Cait Sith asked, nervousness shaking his Irish accented voice.

"Of course we are." Aerith smiled politely and patted the small cat on the head. "He's our friend." 

**Regret**

"He's in there." I pointed over to a small shack, where Barrett had just ventured into. We quickly shuffled forward and made our way into the small building, spotting Barrett in the corner of the room, punching the wall softly.

"Didn't I tell you not to come 'ere?" Barrett yelled, punching the wall harder. I scoffed loudly and cocked my hip out.

"You really thought we were going to listen to you?" I smirked at the small smile that made it's way onto the man's face.

"I didn't want none of ya' to get involved."

"Hey! That's Cloud's line!" Aerith said, a small giggle escaping her lips. Ivan laughed weakly and sat up, grinning.

"It's too dangerous, I can't let you get involved…blah, blah, blah!" Ivan lowered her voice and did her best Cloud impression. "We're already involved."  
Barrett let out a defeated sigh and fell into a conveniently placed, broken sofa in the middle of the small room.

"There's another man that got a gun grafted into his arm…" Barrett said, leaning back into the couch with his eyes closed. "Dyne…" He whispered. His voice was so soft and quiet, it was barely audible.  
"Four years ago…Corel was attacked by ShinRa soldiers." Yuffie let out a loud groan.

"ShinRa always has something to do with everything!" She stomped her foot on the ground and huffed in annoyance, but quickly stopped herself from making noises when she caught my glare.

"As I was sayin' before I was rudely interrupted…" Barrett shot an irritated look towards Yuffie, who grinned awkwardly in response. "Corel was attacked. Me and Dyne tried to run, but ShinRa chased us down. Dyne fell off a cliff, I tried to pull him up, but the soldiers shot our arms and I had to let go. Dyne…he was my best friend…" Aerith took a seat next to Barrett and placed and sympathetic hand on his shoulder. She rubbed comforting circles down his back, causing Barrett to send a vulnerable and awkward smile to her in response.

"From then on I couldn't use my right arm no more, so I got a gun grafted in. I got a gun in order to get revenge on ShinRa. They took everything away from me." Barrett raised his gun-arm and waved it around a bit before returning to his story.

"Back then, the doc said there was another man who had the same operation, but his was on the left arm."  
"So Dyne is still alive?" Tifa asked. "Maybe he'll join AVALANCHE."

"An' why would he do that? Dyne…he won't have a reason to fight. He lost his wife, hates me and god knows I ain't lettin' him see Marlene."  
"Marlene?" Yuffie asked, confused.

"My adopted daughter…Dyne's her real father. He hates me for allowin' ShinRa to build in our town, and judging from what we saw at the Battle Square, he ain't in his right mind to even be near Marlene."  
"So, what are we going to do?" I inquired. What was Barrett planning on doing with Dyne? Fight him? What would that accomplish?

"I'm going to find Dyne an' apologize. Apologize for everythin'. You all ain't doin' nothing. This is my problem." I rolled my eyes.

"Do what you want. Is that what you want to hear?" It was more of a statement than a question, and it didn't require an answer. I let out a small chuckle, a smirk slowly making it's way onto my face. "We're coming with you. No buts and no complaints."

"Aright, fine. But only two of ya'. Can't be causin' a scene now can we?"

"Can I go?" Ivan asked, a look of excitement passing her face.

"No." Cloud said, almost immediately. Ivan's happy expression immediately dropped and frowned. "You're too injured. I don't want to risk it." Ivan merely huffed and turned away from Cloud with Zeus following suite.  
"Cloud and I will accompany Barrett. The rest of you, stay here." I began to walk out of the room, but stopped short and glanced over my shoulder. "And don't let her out of your sight." I said, my eyes shooting towards Ivan. She stuck her tongue out at me causing the room to erupt in small fits of laughter.

"We'll be back soon." Cloud said, leading us away from small shack. 

**Ivan  
**I ran my hand over my ribcage, feeling the slight protruding bone poking my lung. I took in a deep breath and winced as I felt it graze against my insides. When the guard pulled me off of Zeus and I hit the ground, the impact caused a bone in my ribcage to break, which became the cause of my internal bleeding. A cough broke the silence of the room and I could taste the blood that found it's way from my torso to my mouth. I cringed in disgust and pain and shifted around so I was in a much more comfortable position on Zeus. A position that would not further irritate my injuries. Red looked at me, cocking his head to the side but I simply smiled at him, a way of telling him that everything was okay.  
I didn't want to tell anyone of my injury. I was becoming more of a burden the longer I stayed with AVALANCHE, and I hated it.

"So…" Yuffie said from her cross-legged position on the ground.

"Is there a way to get out of this place?" I asked, ignoring the pain that was searing through my body.

"On the contrary…there is one way." Upon hearing this, everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and listened in intently.

"They let one prisoner a day participate in a Chocobo Race. If you win the Chocobo Race, ya set free." Cait Sith explained. I smiled and patted Zeus' head, an idea forming in my head.

"So…me and Zeus will enter. Together, we can't lose." I hugged Zeus' neck and sent a confident grin in Cait Sith's direction, my eye twitching at the pain that shot through me upon my sudden movement.

"I'm sure you wouldn't lose. But you need permission from the boss to enter. And the boss down here is…well…Dyne."

"Great…." Tifa mumbled, punching her fist into the couch she was sitting on.

"Then we'll just have to wait for the others to return."


	14. Chapter 14

**HEY ALL! I know what you're thinking...GASP. I'm actually updating. This update is for a VERY persistent friend, who actually threatened me to post. So this chapter may be confusing...but DO NOT FRET, as all will be explained in due time.  
I received a review from an ANON asking why this story was labelled with Sephiroth and Vincent if they're not in it. Well, if you haven't noticed, this story follows the timeline of the actual game, so obviously I can't just randomly put them in...AND they both will eventually become extremely relevant to the stories plot. They're the original Nomura characters that my story circles around alongside my OC'S.  
Now that THAT is out of the way...enjoy, rate review. You know the deal.  
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Final Fantasy...if I did, shit would go dooown!**

The faceoff between old friends resulted in the death of Dyne. A victory as such would satisfy any living being, with the exception of Barrett. He did not feel victorious. He only felt remorse. With unwanted success beneath his belt, Barrett returned to his awaiting eco-friendly rebel group. As he made his way back, Regret and Cloud made no attempt to comfort him. They knew better than to raise feelings he was trying desperately to repress. Barrett could attempt to forget the recent happenings and revel in the fact that the rest of AVALANCHE was safe, but this was an impossible feat, as one key member of the group was presently missing.

**REGRET  
**"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S GONE?" I screamed, my voice reaching a tone I never thought possible. I quickly coughed to cover up my spontaneous outburst and closed my eyes, composing myself.  
"Where is she?" I asked this with a cool demeanour, yet one could easily hear the distress in my voice, no matter how expertly I hid it. RED XIII trotted forward, his ears and tail sagging.  
"Cait Sith mentioned a Chocobo race as a means of freedom from this prison." He let out a long drawn sigh. "We were all resting, so nobody noticed when she left the building, presumably to enter the race..." RED XIII appeared solemn, and I couldn't help but feel some sort of sympathy toward the dog.  
"That idiot..." I clenched my fists and frowned, unsure of what else to say.  
"I wonder if she made it up there anyway. She couldn't have spoken to Dyne; otherwise you three would have seen her." As Aerith stated this, we all halted our current thoughts and turned to Cait Sith, mentally probing him for answers. Not in the nicest way, might I add.

**IVAN  
**"Hm...So that's what happened." Ester said, her eyes closed in thought. "I'll talk to Dio for you. You just concentrate on the race." She stood and patted my head, smiling warmly.  
I had encountered Ester upon sneaking away from the group, and found that she was more than willing to help me enter a Chocobo race. She was a racing expert and an all around good person, and detested the idea of a desert prison.  
"Just go down this corridor and turn left. You'll be in the Jockey Lounge." She began to walk in the opposite direction of where I was headed, but quickly stopped and shuffled over to me, her quick movements catching my eye.  
"Ivan, don't underestimate the Jockeys in that room. There are many types of people in there. These races aren't only for criminals, love. Inside that room are Jockeys that compete for fame, for money and for glory. They are indeed, professionals. So...expect a challenge." I nodded, slightly nervous, and ventured into the room, waving off Ester kindly. Closing the door with a thud, I looked around to find a room full of hardy men staring at me with intimidation. Brushing off their glares; I situated myself against a wall, with Zeus by my side. He nudged my shoulder, causing me to swallow the dry lump that had developed within my throat. What if I lose? What then? Zeus warked lowly, and held his head high.  
"Geez, cocky much?" I held back a giggle and tugged on Zeus' reins lightly. "We can do it! I know we can." I whispered more to myself than Zeus.  
_**"ALL JOCKEYS PROCEED TO GATE 3. THE RACE WILL BEGIN IN 2 MINUTES."  
**_"You ready Zeus?" I asked with anxiousness evident through my shaking voice. Zeus merely warked loudly and hit my shoulder with his beak, hard.  
I mounted Zeus and found a comfortable position on his back, my hands clenching his reins tightly.  
"We can do this..."  
**3  
**"We can win..."  
**2  
**"Regret's gonna kill me..."  
**1  
**"Maybe I shouldn't-"  
**GO  
**I was caught off guard by the sudden jolt of energy that shot through Zeus as he sped down the track.  
"Z-Zeus! SLOW DOWN...WAIT! Don't slow down! Run faster!" I let out a shout of a joy as Zeus gained on the two Jockeys that had a lead on me. With repetitive snapping of Zeus' reins, he began to overtake said Jockeys.  
"We're winning! We're winning!" I stuck my tongue out at the other racers as we passed them, fits of giggles escaping my throat at their reactions.  
"FASTER!" I commanded, gently nudging his wing with the side of my foot. Zeus sprinted forward, resulting in all others becoming barely visible. In the far distance was a white ribbon that indicated the finish line. With no extra effort, Zeus expertly skidded to a halt and broke the white ribbon into pieces. A large grin broke out onto my face and I threw my arms around Zeus' neck, squealing in delight.  
"WE WON!"

**REGRET  
**I paced back and forth impatiently, waiting for Ivan to appear. We were informed of her win by Ester, and as a result, were allowed to leave the desert prison. However, Ivan had yet to appear and admittedly, I was worried.  
"Where are you?" It felt absurd to allow my feelings to be dominant, but it was something I could not suppress at such a time. I was afraid, and I let it show.  
"Are you okay Regret?" Aerith let out a whisper, so soft and gentle it was comparable to a slight brush of air. I pathetically shook my head and looked down, my eyebrows furrowing in perplexity.  
"What is happening?" My whisper was cruel and scolding. "Why am I so...weak?"  
"Showing emotion is not a sign of weakness..." Aerith stated loudly, attracting the attention of the rest AVALANCHE. "If anything, it makes you human."  
"To be human...is something I gave up long ago." Aerith's face contorted into confusion as I said this. I turned a shoulder and closed my eyes, avoiding the gazes of curiosity. This was not a subject that would be discussed. Not now, not ever.

"IVAN!" Yuffie's voice diverted the attention away from me, which I was extremely thankful for. I shifted my attention toward where the others were looking, and watched intently as Zeus carried a sorrowful looking Ivan toward us. I peered closely and discovered a piece of paper clutched in her small hands, which were lightly trembling. Something was upsetting her, and it definitely did not take a genius to figure that out.  
"Hey guys..." She mumbled, forcing a smile onto her sad features. "I won the race, but you probably already knew that." Cloud reached forward and pulled Ivan off of Zeus and into his arms in a tight embrace. The gesture was sweet, and brought a smile to everyone's faces except mine.  
"What were you thinking?" I yelled, grasping at her arm with a vice like grip. Her pale eyes met mine and in an instant, I caught a glimpse of all her emotions. Sadness, terror and..._regret_. I pulled harder at her arm, implying that I had wanted an answer, but she merely whimpered, her pointy dog-like ears lowering and her tail hitting the sandy ground with a 'thup'.  
"Red..." She cried out, closing her eyes. Red carefully nipped at my ankle and shook his head, and I released her arm, throwing it to her side. She dropped to her knees and let her head drop to his furry body, whispering something into his ear. I analysed Red's facial expressions and watched as his eyes narrowed and his fangs protruded.  
"What's going on?" Tifa asked, clearly confused. It seems we all were. Barrett opened his mouth to ask what we were all thinking, but became distracted by a faint rumbling in the distance. The rumbling developed into a roar as a large Buggy pulled up next to us. Ester popped out from inside, smiling warmly at everyone.  
"Hey ya'll!" She piped up, waving happily. "Why so grave? Ah, don't answer that!" She closed the door to the Buggy behind her and beckoned us forward.  
"I guess this is goodbye guys. Dio sends his apology for the misunderstanding and sent this Buggy to you as reconciliation. It' all explained in the letter!"  
"What letter?" Cloud inquired, raising an eyebrow Ester slapped his back and grinned, pointing at Ivan.  
"The letter Dio gave to Ivan." At this, Ivan quickly stashed the paper into her pocket, her face flushing.  
"I...I never got a letter."  
"Hmm..." Ester pondered a hand on her chin. "I guess he forgot. Well, it doesn't matter. Anyway, you should all get going before night falls, It gets pretty chilly in the dark." We all agreed in unison and began to board the Buggy, Barrett at the wheel. "If you ever visit the Gold Saucer again, come seek me out. I'll register you for Chocobo races for free."  
"Hey Ester!" Ivan called out, poking her head out the window of the moving vehicle. "THANK YOU!" Ester waved and smiled as the Buggy sped off.  
"Dio isn't stupid enough to forget a letter that important..." She mumbled, watching as the Buggy disappeared from sight.

**IVAN  
**I was nestled comfortably between a sleeping Red and Zeus in the back of the Buggy. Zeus' large body hid me from the view of others, which made me feel a sort of protection. I glanced down at my pocket and slowly pulled out the letter Dio had given me, tears forming at my eyes. Slowly, my shaking hands unravelled the paper for a second time, my eyes scanning the paper.

_If you are reading this, then you must've won. And won a victory that I am sure you earned. I heard about what happed with Dyne for Ester. Now that you are victorious, I promise that you and all of your friends will get a full pardon, and you will be set free. And also, by way of apology, I have prepared a little gift for you to use on your journey. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you this in person, but I'm a very busy man.  
Ivan, how are you? I haven't seen you since you were a wee tyke, which is probably why I didn't recognize you earlier. I am...truly sorry about what happened when you were here with me. I am very sorry that I couldn't protect you. I am most sorry that your childhood was taken away from you. It is not something you can get back. I'm not sure how you survived, and it is a miracle that you are still alive, but I am thankful everyday for it. I won't be predictable and say your brother is proud of you, because I cannot speak for him, but I will say that I am proud of you. I am truly proud of you. Don't ever forget that._

PS. I just met Sephiroth. He must have a lot of fans your age. Why don't you get his autograph? It seems he is head toward the south of the river, towards Gongaga.  
Sincerely DIO

I clutched the letter to my chest and felt tears explode from my eyes and drip down my cheeks like a monsoon. I felt frustration tear threw my body. Who was this man? Who was Dio? Why is he sorry? What did he do? _What did I do?_ No matter how desperately I tried to remember the past, I couldn't, and I hated myself for it.


End file.
